Advise please - family member has broken both arms.

[Lizbiz89]

My mum has broken both her arms. She's currently in hospital waiting on an op for one. I'm just wondering what aides she'll need when she comes out for the home. Any suggestions will be really appreciated.

I'd presume she won't be able to do anything herself and arrange for someone to be with her while she recovers

Oh dear, both arms is going to be very disabling. Is she in full casts or just splints? What timescale is she looking at in terms of recovery?

It’ll depend on where the breaks are and how severe but even in the best case scenario she’ll need someone with her for the first few days.

I broke one arm very badly earlier in the year and the first 48h after surgery were grim and I needed looking after. After a few days I found all sorts of ways of doing things but can't imagine being without two arms if she's done a thorough job of both.

However I broke my wrist a few years back but could still bend my arm and use my finger tips to steady things and it barely affected my ability to function at all.

Waterproof cast protectors for bathing.

You can get an aid that holds loo roll to enable bum wiping..

She's really going to need someone with her full time if both arms are incapacitated.

If she loses the use of both arms she should be eligible for reablement carers from the hospital/local authority if no one else can provide the level of support she needs.

Usually free for up to six weeks.

If she still has some use of her arms/fingers she may just about manage with personal care etc but I would suggest some easy on clothes and lots of ready meals.

Your poor mum. How did it happen?

She will need carers and in-between times possibly to wear something like a nightdress and be able to make her way to the toilet/commode. She will need help with eating,drinking,toileting,personal care and dressing...hope she recovers soon. Where aboits in her arm is it ?

My late dp broke his humerus & was in pot from wrist to shoulder. He was right handed & couldn't do much including fastening buttons, putting in contact lenses, tying sholases, he even struggled wiping his bum. Depending on where your family member has broken her arms will be in a lot of pain & won't be able to do most things for at least 6-8 weeks & unable to lift any weight for 3-6 months. If she has any fingers available, a grabber would be useful, a travel mug with lid & a trolley on wheels for carrying meals. She will need someone to cook meals, help her wash & dress, cut up her food & maybe even someone to feed her if she has full casts on.

@Lizbiz89
Firstly I'm so sorry to hear about your mum it must be awful for her

I work in a hospital and generally they'll do a discharge assessment and work out a care package based on what she needs and occupational therapy come and do an assessment too and supply any gadgets to make it a bit easier for her.

If they can't cover it in her own home options are family or friends taking it in turns to be with her inbetween carers or her going somewhere for some respite care perhaps.

Ey won't discharge her until things are in place they have a duty of care for her

Oh your poor Mum

Spend a couple of hours with a jumper on but your arms inside it so you can't move them. Which tasks can you not do? That will give you a clue about what help she will need.

Look through Complete Care Shop and NRS Healthcare websites for all sorts of aids available, they tend to be the most reasonably priced but always compare online.

I'm pretty sure she'll need a person with her for the first few weeks at least to assist with everything she can no longer do for herself whilst her arms are in a cast.

[quote omgthepain]@Lizbiz89
Firstly I'm so sorry to hear about your mum it must be awful for her

I work in a hospital and generally they'll do a discharge assessment and work out a care package based on what she needs and occupational therapy come and do an assessment too and supply any gadgets to make it a bit easier for her.

If they can't cover it in her own home options are family or friends taking it in turns to be with her inbetween carers or her going somewhere for some respite care perhaps.

Ey won't discharge her until things are in place they have a duty of care for her [/quote]
That may be a bit optimistic I'm afraid. It is of course what should happen but in reality it doesn't always. My recent experience of discharge planning, both as a patient and a relative has been abysmal.
I was discharged with little notice at 10pm on a Friday after a long hospital stay. I sustained multiple injuries in a major RTC and was still non weight bearing, unable to wash or go to the toilet independently etc and had had no discharge assessment of any kind. When I got home I stood at the bottom of the stairs and cried - I'd as much chance of getting up them as climbing Everest. I'd been promised an "urgent" home visit from OT or physio. It took 3 weeks(and multiple phone calls).
An elderly relative of mine (different area) was recently discharged after breaking several bones in a fall, into the care of her equally elderly husband with early dementia. No discharge plan was in place, they didn't speak to the family and we couldn't race cocerns as no visiting because of covid and no follow up was arranged despite their being fractures that needed review according to her discharge summary. Again, we had to sort everything out ourselves.
OP, you might be lucky and live somewhere where the system works properly, but I would prepare yourself for the fact that it might not. Better to be prepared to have to do everything and pleasantly surprised if you don't, than vice versa.
I didn't break both arms but my right arm was injured and I had left sided chest injuries so it was very painful to use my left arm too. Things that helped me included an electric toothbrush- much easier to use than a manual one when your arm movements are limited, a big v shaped pillow so I could sleep slightly upright as lying down was very painful and waterproof cast covers as a PP mentioned. We borrowed an adjustable height table on wheels a bit like the ones they have in hospital and DH got some non slip mats so he could put drinks on there for me if he needed to go put for a bit. I could pull the table towards me with my unbroken leg and then drink with a straw without needing to lift the cup up. One of the worst things was boredom though so make sure your mum has access to things like audio books as she's going to be limited in what she can do.
I hope she gets well soon.

Are they just lower arm casts or full arm? Shoulders? It'll make a bit of a difference.

Does she live on her own?

Thank you for all of the replies. She's shattered one arm and it'll be in a sling for a few weeks minimum and the other arm is in a really bad way. She may need reconstruction on her elbow and she really damaged it badly. She fell from her front step and she must have come down hard. I still can't get over that she can do that much damage from just falling over. She's got her partner who lives with her so she'll have help. I was just wondering what aides may help with her daily activities. I've ordered her a bottom wiper and I'll get some covers for her casts but I was wondering if there is anything else that would be useful?

A trolley table she can move things around on. If she asks for one when leaving hospital they will probably supply her with one.

My mum injured her back recently, leaving her unable to care for herself and too much for her elderly husband. I got in touch with social services local emergency team and arranged carers, OT etc. They were brilliant and the care needs have dropped to what they were. Mum also now has cleaners. She was given aids, including a hospital bed.

Would a portable hairdresser sink be useful for washing hair? Getting into the shower or bath might not be realistic at first if she's in a lot of pain. You can get cast covers for showers, so get some of those in. (It's awesome these have been invented, when I broke my arm 25 years ago my mum resorted to taping plastic freezer bags around my cast!)

I think she also needs checking for osteoporosis- which hopefully the hospital will do.

Really sorry to hear that OP.

It was my elbow that I shattered. I'm afraid to say that the recovery is proving quite challenging and slow for me (I'm 6 months down the line and have had tons of physio).

It's imperative that she gets physio lined up for the minute she's out of a cast. I regret not paying for private physio straight away so that I could at least get started while I waited for NHS.

The first week was incredibly painful for me and i needed a lot of painkillers then a few weeks with just paracetamol and after that the pain was entirely manageable but my arm was functionally hopeless for a while.

I managed to look after myself in terms of all personal care but I had one good arm to help me!

I have struggled to regain confidence after such a simple undramatic fall leading to such a catastrophic break. Think it was my lockdown weight gain meaning my arm just crumbled under my hefty weight!

@30degreesandmeltinghere

You can get an aid that holds loo roll to enable bum wiping..

Sorry to derail but could you give me a bit of info on where I could get one of these please?

OP - really sorry to crash your thread and also really sorry to hear about your mum. I hope she makes a good recovery but I'm sure she will need quite a lot of help with pretty much everything especially bathing/toileting/dressing and cooking/eating. How awful for her - I hope you're able to get any extra help and support before she leaves hospital.

My friend just asked at the big pharmacy she got her meds from. Looked like a loo brush without the brush. An angled bit at the end for the loo roll!!

@Twatterati I ordered one from Amazon. Just typed in bottom wiper 😂. Yes I'm going to be going over to hers every day when she comes out. And her partner will be there in the evening.

My husband broke both wrists and had plaster casts to his elbows. He managed ok - limbo waterproof cast covers meant he could shower ok and he managed all aspects of the loo fine (thank goodness🤣). However, he wasn’t able to cook, dress himself, drink etc.

From what I remember, things that made life easier were cups with straw for drinking as he couldn’t hold the cup very well. We got some cheap joggers and zip fronted hoodies from Primark that were easy to get in and out of - we cut up the seams of the arms to get them over the casts.

When my late mum broke her arm, she gleefully told me that she had stopped wear knickers 🤭😂 apparently that made the loo much easier, even if a little draughty 😀