Dear Advisor – My wife is currently in hospital after having a fall, she has recently been diagnosed with dementia. I am worried about how I’m going to manage when she is discharged home as I have my own health issues and her mobility has severely declined since being in hospital.
It is not uncommon to feel anxious around discharge and how you are going to be able to manage when a cared for person returns home. When your wife is deemed medically fit the therapy team will complete an assessment to determine her care needs and a discussion will be had with you both to look at how best these can be met, this will be your opportunity to share any concerns. If it is felt a patient would benefit from ongoing therapy, they may be discharged to a community hospital rehab bed, if not they may be discharged home with an appropriate care package.
Whether your wife is discharged to a community hospital rehab bed or discharged home, ongoing assessments will continue, these assessments will determine whether longer term care is needed. Additionally if required there may be a referral to the community therapy team from the hospital but this is something you can do yourself should you feel it necessary through the Care Coordination Centre. Please feel free to contact Suffolk Family Carers when your wife is home as we can give you information of support/services which you might find beneficial in the future.
