Three hospital falls with carers in a year - ok?

[Supersimkin2]

DM has Parkinson’s and after a welter of solo escapes and A&E falls, she’s no longer allowed out without a carer.

But even with a carer she’s had three falls requiring hosp admission in a year.

I know Parkinson’s = falling over, but could we expect more from the carers? They’re not trained but she won’t tolerate anyone else.

Expect what? How can they stop her from falling? Maybe it's time to look into a wheel chair or other mobility aids.

Surely they are trained in some way ….,

id say may be ok but have you had physio and OT assessment to ensure aids correct and correctly used and assistance is being given in the most fed to e way.

It's not their fault if she falls

They're actually not allowed to catch people when they fall either because of health and safety

Ask their agency about staff training, although it still might not prevent falls. Three in a year might simply be disease progression. Review indicated.

Doss she love at home or in a care setting? Who are these untrained carers?
I'd say it's time to assess for a wheelchair for outdoor trips, with a lap belt if appropriate.

People do fall though especially older people with Parkinson’s. I worked in a nursing home ( housekeeping) and it wasn’t unusual for people to fall and require hospital treatment. There’s only so much you can do to mitigate risk. I think the difference between carehome/ carers is length of time they might be left after falling if alone but that doesn’t seem to be the case here.

If the staff are from an agency then they should have training.
Could you get her referred to the Falls Clinic by her GP? She needs input and equipment to make going out safer ... she should see an OT and a physio.

How compliant / aware of her own limitations is she? My elderly relative has had three falls in three weeks in hospital - including one which resulted in a head injury- because she won't follow instructions and insists on getting out of bed all the bloody time!

She's of sound mind by the way, she's just an arsehole.

People do fall, especially with Parkinsons.

The carers are there to assist but they will not catch her if she starts falling. One carer on their own if definitely not going to stop someone falling, it's not as if they can wade in and prop her up. And they will probably always call 999 if out and about so she will end up with hospital admissions.

She needs:
physio and OT assessment
Medication R/V by GP and R/V of Parkinsons meds to see if changes can help reduce falls
Care plan for carers of what to do if she does fall and info for paramedics so everything doesn't end up as a trip to hospital
All of the above could be done by a falls clinic.

But even with all this, there are going to be falls.

Thanks so much - I agree with you all. People do fall.

She’s getting worse and won’t use a stick.

Hi OP, I’m a nurse and one of the first things they tell you is that if someone is going to fall you have to let them fall, we should not be putting ourselves at risk of hurting our own backs by trying to hold peoples entire body weight up, and also trying to grab onto someone falling means you may inadvertently hurt them even more (from dislocating shoulders, breaking arms or causing skin damage such as skin tears). I’m so sorry your mum is having difficulties with her mobility due to her Parkinson’s, I’d ask for a physio referral to see if their are any aids that may help.

Am doing it now! All the recs followed - thank you again.

As an ex home help, we are not permitted to catch a person who is falling, it cam do way more harm to them than letting their body do what it needs to to protect itself.

The issue is not the carers, the issue is your DM and her refusal to use the aids she needs.

Parkinsons is a bastard of a disease, and ahe is clearly not ready to accept her limitations but there is nothing the carers cam do unfortunately.

Would she listen to a physio or gp about mobility aids?

Could you maybe get her a "pretty" stick, they do some fab folding ones that are all floral etc?

Like this one to make it less clinical?

https://amzn.eu/d/bJDlVIi

Thanks. We’ve tried the floral stick!

In Parkinson’s the falling body doesn’t have reflexes to protect itself. A fall can kill - you fall onto your head.

Thanks for sharing the carer rules.

My DM had Parkinson's. She had a number of falls and hospital admissions with a broken leg more than once. One time she was right next to me, started wobbling, grabbed my arm to try to get her balance and we both ended up on the floor in fits of giggles, with no injuries on that occasion thankfully! This was indoors on carpet. For outdoors she had a wheelchair.

'Could we expect more from the carers'....
So you do blame them? Why are they 'untrained'

It'll be amazing to hear how you think they can do more to stop her falling when she won't use aids!

It's worrying isn't it? I tried to tell myself that a strong independent spirit was a good thing - and to an extent it is, when compared with giving up and doing nothing - but OMG the amount of unavoidable bruises caused by sheer stubbornness.

I've no idea what the answer is OP I'm afraid, but I wanted to let you know that you are not alone. Deep down I'm very fond of disreputable older ladies who refuse to call for help or use their recommended walking aids, and I fully intend to become a maddening old baggage myself when the time comes. But it's so hard when it's a close family member who is black & blue & sore.

She may need two people to move her safely rather than one?
but agree 3 falls in a year is too many if she is being cared for properly.
a carer should know and say if she is unsafe to be moved by one person safely.

If she's walking without a stick, she's not at the stage of 'being moved' by carers @ItsAllSoBleak

OP, if she won't use walking aids there's really not much anyone can do beyond trying to change her mind - which isn't a carer's job.

I'd agree with requesting a referral to the Falls Clinic. I might spend a bit of time going out with her and the carer - seeing how they do the request to use the stick, maybe trying a bit of emotional blackmail to encourage her to use it. Then imo you've done what you can and the rest is up to her.

Hi OP. I think 3 falls while transferring with supervision would want looking at, as care staff could be close to hand and anticipating difficulty on these occasions. I think if she's walking out and about without a stick and doesn't literally want someone to have hands on her all the time, care staff would be quite limited in what they could do to prevent a fall without potentially hurting themselves.

They'd have to stay very close and probably be behind her or right next to her when she's walking to stop her falling, which is possibly not practicable for extended periods. How much they could intervene in a fall also dependent on their relative sizes.

sometimes people find a hiking pole more acceptable than a walking stick.

She needs to use her bloody stick!

This especially if they are not trained. How are they allowed to work with her if they are not trained in how to care for her?