Mum has dementia. Disagreement with Social Services about level of care required

So how would 2 visits a day work with 4 x day meds if the person cannot manage themselves.

Any social worker experienced in working with older adults will be fully aware of the importance of timed meds visits for Parkinsons. As should any domiciliary care agencies they contract with.

She isn't anywhere near the local authority threshold for residential care though. If two care visits a day aren't enough try three or four. Try extra care if independent living is no longer working.

I appreciate you want your mum to be safer but a care home will take away any last scrap of independence she has and if she's still able to prepare meals etc then she isn't at the resi care stage.

You are the expert in your mum but the social workers are benchmarking her against the 100s of other people they support to safely remain in the community until that is no longer possible. Perhaps also ask about day centres, social opportunities, direct payments, extra care housing etc to see if there is a balance somewhere between independ living and residential care for the moment?

As PPs have said the current practice is that someone will not be deemed as needing a care home unless 4 x a day care package at home has not been enough to meet their needs. If you need any funding from SS then she will need to meet their criteria for care home funding.
Have you thought about borrowing some money against the flat to fund the gap until it’s sold?

Medication is so important with pd and I wouldn't leave it with ss to decide what's safe. I'd ask for a GP, pd nurse, community pharmacist review and assessment, they may suggest patches or if not decide she would not manage taking tablets on time. Would she have daily hot meals delivered, there are several companies where I live that do this. What do ss suggest the carers do, are they offering medication, personal care, meal preparation.

First thing is for your mum to have a capacity assessment and a care needs assessment, you can speak to her GP and dementia or pd nurse about this and her medication. If she is deemed to need residential care push for the deferred payments, if she is considered safe with 4 x daily carers then you'll have to try that. Is there a keysafe, falls alarm, mobility equipment, also look at benefits, attendance allowance, if she has nursing needs fnc. Is there poa in place, can she have you do her banking, online shopping.

I've said it before and I'll say again and again - watching someone with dementia (of any type) is like watching a slow motion car crash - you know what's going to happen and are powerless to prevent it. Usually it's because the person with dementia or their immmediate partner is refusing additional support / care.

Look I appreciate 2 visits per day is minimal and at minimum your Mum needs help with medication 4 times a day - take what's offered and then pester for more.

Has you Mum claimed every benefit she's entitled to - reduced council tax, attendance alowance etc . If not put the wheels in motion as they coud help pay for extra carer time. And attendance allowance is payable when in a care home and therefore contribute to fees.

Also try and get your Mum out for social things too. Local authority day centres are probably a thing of the past, but local community groups are around and can be a life line. My dad was reluctant to take my Mum who had dementia but we eventually persuaded him to go a a music group which Mum loved. He still volunteers there and Mum's been dead for coming up 3 years and she was in a care home for nearly 2 before she died.

Check the Alzheimer's society website for local groups - they don't give a fig for the type of dementia the person is living with. Aged UK website is brilliant for financial things too.

Not necessarily enough. Dementia decline often plateaus and that can last quite a while. One of the reasons dementia is so hard to manage is because pathways are so individual. My mum was diagnosed 5 years ago after it being obvious to us for a couple of years, still lives at home with twice daily checks to make sure she hasn't switched off the heating or left the freezer open etc but she still shops and cooks for herself. She can easily go a year stable and then something else gets lost. Someone else might go from forgetful to incapable of anything in 12 months.

If when the money runs out they still don't feel she meets the criteria they still won't fund the care home. She would need to move out again - they would probably look at sheltered extra care etc.

I think you need to try carers at home and utilising assistive technology first. Ask for an OT assessment to see if there any other aids or adaptations that might help. At the very least this might delay her needing residential care until the flat is sold. Use the need for 4 x a day meds as the reason for carers. She will be financially assessed for this care.

Retirement flats can take a very long time to sell and you may need to drop the price which might affect what home she can afford.

Be aware as well that once funds run out, the local authority sets a cap on fees so if the home she has chosen is too expensive, she will need to move unless you can make up the shortfall with her benefits. Best to check now with the home you have in mind that they have beds at the local authority rate.

But only if SS have assessed that that person needs to be in a care home and at the moment she doesn't meet that criteria from the sounds of it.

Only when they are assessed as needing to be in a care home! Which she isn't. It's hard for you as her DD and you want her to have all the care she needs but in purely threshold terms you're asking for public funds that she's not entitled to.

Yes exactly. That's the point I made. OP wants them to lend her the money so her mum can go into a care home when she's not entitled to it. She's asking social care for a loan. It's a different scenario if the elderly person actually needs to be in the care home.

Sadly this is just how it is. If your mum has assets she cannot get funding. I guess it makes sense as people would try NOT to sell their properties to avoid paying for care otherwise.

The medication issue isn't a social care need, it's a health need so social care aren't allowed to take it into account.

This isn’t true if someone is assessed as needing a care home. Social services will fund the place in that situation until the house sells. Sometimes they put a charge on the property to ensure they’re paid. However, the problem here is that they do not think the OP’s mum’s needs have progressed to that point yet. They won’t either fund it or prioritise her for a place if they don’t think it’s necessary.

They aren't a bank, they can't lend you money.
Im sorry but apart from the medication issue nothing you said in the OP is a reason why she needs to be in a care home funded by public funds immediately. If you want her in the home before her flat sells you'll have to borrow the funds and pay it back when the flat sells.

Do you have LPA for your mum? If not, I suggest you get the application submitted asap.