Ask a dementia care expert about care homes for dementia - chance to win £150 QUESTION SUBMISSIONS NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

In support of World Alzheimer’s Day, Barchester Healthcare is offering you the chance to ask a leading dementia care expert any questions you may have about care homes for people living with dementia and finding the right home for a loved one.

Caroline Baker, Director of Dementia Care at Barchester, has spent many years working with care services to ensure they are taking a person-centred approach that is based on the latest evidence and research in the field. She also deeply understands the emotional pressures involved in choosing a care home and how hard it can be supporting a friend or relative during this time.

Whether you would like to ask a question about yourself, a loved one, or have more general queries about care homes specialising in dementia care, please post your questions for Caroline before 5th October.

About Caroline Baker:
Caroline Baker is Director of Dementia Care at Barchester Healthcare, and has specialised in dementia for 30 years. She is also a published author and won a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 for her contribution to the sector. Her latest book ‘Visiting the Memory Café and other Dementia Care Activities’, was released in August.

About Barchester Healthcare:
Barchester Healthcare is a major UK care provider committed to delivering high-quality services across its care homes and hospitals. They pride themselves on offering expert dementia care in their specially designed Memory Lane Communities, where staff are trained to celebrate each person’s individuality and support people to continue living with independence, dignity and choice.

So, ask Caroline your questions about care homes for people living with dementia and finding the right home for a loved one by posting them below by the 5th October. We’ll then choose 20 questions for her to answer and post a link to the responses as soon as possible.

All who post a question below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £150 voucher (whether their question is chosen or not).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

My mum has severe dementia, and is still at home (just about!), though she's had a respite stay. Looking at homes, I find many are still thinking of residents as having the prime of their life in the 1940's - for my mum it's the 1960's!
For younger patients, what do you think dementia homes need to be doing?

From our own experience and that of other families we know, it often seems that admission to a care home for a person with dementia often happens when attempted family care has broken down, often to the detriment of the carer's mental/physical health, and sometimes also that of the person themselves. Obviously every family deals with their own individual circumstances, but do you think there are general indications that a person is approaching the time when residential care will soon be necessary? Do you think it is better to move the person a little 'too early' instead of 'too late'?

(I have a lot of guilt that we struggled 'too long' to keep my mother in her home. By the time we understood this, my mother had come to physical harm on several occasions and, in my preoccupation with Mum I neglected to notice that one of my teenagers had developed MH issues.)

I'd like to know about how they support families emotionally with the symptoms of dementia

I'd like to know what are the best things to look for when visiting different care homes, and what sort of questions you should be asking.

My partner is suddenly struggling with his 86yr Mum whose dementia has been fast impacting, further exacerbated by sudden bereavement of her husband a few months ago. We're currently in limbo between short-term NHS intervention team and a private (and un-assessed) team taking over. She wants to stay in her own home but fear this may not be possible soon - to echo other people's concerns, what are the best questions to be asking...and are there other sheltered home or midway options available?

Are care homes focuses on the needs of individuals or do clients have to adapt to a general routine?
Will care homes have contact with the local community so clients still feel,part of the outside world?

What is the best time to visit a care home to get a true feel for what it is like? Is it best to go quite a few times first?

What signs (of dementia) should I look out for in my parents?

If you suspect a family member is developing Dementia what is the best course of action to take ?

How is the transition from their home to a care home made easier for people with dementia? As I can imagine its extremely confusing and sometimes very unsettling to leave the comfort of their own home to go to a strange place

What is the best time to visit a care home to get a true feel for what it is like? Is it best to go quite a few times first?

My relative has a beloved cat, would it ever be possible for a person to live in a care home with their cat, and if so how would I go about finding one please ?

I know that in general people with dementia don't like change so moving them out of their own home to a care home can be very upsetting and confusing for them. So two questions:

Would it be better to get paid care in their own home rather then move them into a car home?

How do care homes mitigate this problem and make the transition as easy as possible?

If a person knows they are going to get alzheimers can they request cameras in their care home room so that their family can ensure that they are being well cared for?

Are the homes run under the NHS or are most of them private?

How would I find a good care home that is affordable and is recommended by an unbiased and trustworthy source?

Along with all Mums problems she is losing her sight, although still living in her own house in Scotland. How do you find a suitable Care Home that can help her adjust in a new home along with sight loss.?

My other-in-law has dementia and has lived with us for the past 2 year. She now has other health concerns and are at the point were I'm struggling to manage. What's the best way to choose a care home for her and what can we do to prepare her for it and how can we manage the change well?

If you suspect a family member is developing Dementia what is the best course of action to take ?

Do you think government should be legislating to give better protection to those with dementia? Tighter regulations in care homes, greater access to funding/ staff/ training etc?

How will the care home assist my relative in getting out and about?

What signs (of dementia) should I look out for

My mum isn't yet 60 and has been recently diagnosed with dementia she isn't too bad at the moment but when she gets to the point where she can no longer live in the house by herself and we have to find a care home for her how will I find one that takes in and caters for patients of her age most care home I have looked at seem to cater for older patients plus I want one that deals specifically with dementia patients is there such homes in existence and if so how would I find one ?

What are the sure signs of early dementia and can it be slowed with current medications?

My Mother in law has Parkinson's at an advanced stage. After 2 falls in very quick succession, she has very suddenly developed dementia. She is insistent that she isn't going into a nursing home, but she is clearly not physically or mentally capable of going home from hospital. How do I help my husband chose a suitable care home? Especially when she (in lucid moments) is so resistant.