Mum is in her 80s and has been in her present care home for 3 years. I live hundreds of miles away but the rest of my family live locally to her and visit regularly.
She got a nice pair of earrings for Xmas. My sister put them in for her and she looked lovely. When she visited on New Year's Eve my Mum did not have them in. My sister asked her when they had been taken out - she didn't know. She is often confused and her memory can be erratic. She is probably is in the early stages of dementia but can be quite lucid. My sister had a good look round her room. She asked one of the carers who said someone might have taken them out and put them aside somewhere and forgotten about them. My sister asked them to have a good look round to see if they had got mixed up with someone elses stuff. The Care Home Manager said she would ask all her staff if they had seen them.
The care home seem to think they might have come out when she had her jumper taken off.
My sister is being very patient and understanding with the staff. They are offering to reimburse her the £22 cost of the earrings.
I am upset because I think they have probably been stolen (and my sister thinks this is a possibility too). I think we should get the police involved. Unfortunately, 2 years ago my Mum's wedding rings went "missing" the day after my Dad's funeral. The family gave the home the benefit of the doubt then and accepted an apology from the care home (they admitted that someone had put them in an envelope and that they hadn't been put in the safe and had got "lost")
I feel bad because I am so far away and won't have to deal with the fallout of this situation if the police become involved. That situation will fall entirely on my sister's shoulders. Many of the carers in the home are lovely and my sister has a good relationship with them. They do rely heavily on agency staff.
I just feel so bad for my Mum (and by default) the other residents of the home. I fear someone is taking advantage of their vulnerability. Do you think I am right in advising my sister to contact the police even though it might make for an unpleasant atmosphere between her and my Mum's carers (and my Mum?)
Please or to access all these features
Please
or
to access all these features
Elderly parents
Stuff going missing in carehome
32 replies
stolenearrings · 07/01/2014 19:41
OP posts:
moldingsunbeams ·
08/01/2014 14:09
This reply has been deleted
Message withdrawn at poster's request.
Please create an account
To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.