Planned respite care

[superram]

Can anyone help advise? My mum has primary progressive aphasia and my dad is her full time carer. He needs a break. He would like to go to a specific event while my mum is in respite care. However, the residential home we like won’t let us book in the respite until 2 weeks beforehand. How can we get around this? Do people never book holidays or events to coincide with respite? Any ideas or do I just have to find 20 suitable places and cross my fingers one has space?

It's difficult op. Sadly these homes are businesses, if they can they will take a permanent resident over a respite placement they will. Would mum manage at home with carers coming in? Or are her needs too high.

She can’t really be left alone. She’s mobile but can’t toilet/feed herself so would need 24 hour care.

Live in carer temporarily?

Live in temporary care. That way mum remains at home and carer is on hand throughout the day and night. This will depend on if she sleeps at night. And the carer will need 3 hours off each day so another care will need to come in also.

Very few residential care homes have bookable respite beds. Usually they will only take bookings up to 2 weeks before if they have availability (ie a bed free) at the time. That's because usually cares homes only offer respite or short stay beds in their long term beds that have become available in between residents.

Dad should look at a few care homes as the one he's chosen may not have an available bed at the time he wants it. There will be a residential bed available somewhere but it may be further afield or not in a care home he's looked at before.

You can look online at other homes to see if any do bookable respite beds or make a list up so you have at least 6-8 possibles to contact first in those 2 weeks before he is due to go on holiday
Look in a 20 mile radius at all care homes that are suitable.