It would be great if every time a live-in carer arrived at a new client, things were exactly as described on the placement requirements. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, and sometimes when live-in carers arrive, things are quite the opposite to what they are expecting.

Not only does this confuse the incoming carer, it also puts an awful lot of pressure on them realising that things are not what they expect, and worse, may require experience that they may not have.

Whose fault is this?

It is easy to apportion blame but when we look further and ask relevant questions it seems that more than one person may be at fault.

Agencies

Agencies normally rely on carers to keep them informed about changes which may affect the care plan. This is because often agencies are simply too busy to visit every client on a monthly basis to be sure nothing has changed.

They are more likely to be busy recruiting more clients and hiring more carers than to be following up on clients who have carers in place. 

While this may not sit well with live-in carers, it is a fact that hiring carers and obtaining clients is the way the care industry runs. No clients, no carers needed – a downhill spiral which will inevitably lead to the closure of the company. 

Situated carers

In most placements the carer in place is responsible for keeping a daily record of progress. The care records are also there so that the incoming carer can read about any situation which has changed or is in the process of changing.

The incoming carer will have very little idea of the actual situation in a placement unless they are able to talk to the situated carer before arriving. Even this may not always be possible, and often only a quick message on how to get from the station to the house is all that passes between carers. 

If this is the case then it is very important that the outgoing carer leave as many notes as possible about changes and routines in general.

It is the responsibility of the carer in the placement to keep as up to date as possible, both with the agency, and the incoming carer, about anything that may affect the job description. For example, it is very irregular if the client has recently started to have night calls and neither agency nor incoming carer knows about them. 

In instances like this it is often the case where we simply get used to a situation and carry on, rather than realise that it was not what we were doing a month ago, and tell someone about it.

Agencies need to know if there are significant changes, and so does an incoming carer. If hoists have recently been put in place then the incoming carer needs to be aware of this – they may not feel comfortable using a hoist and perhaps would have declined the placement if they had known about it.

Incoming carer

On arriving the incoming carer should find things pretty much as expected. If not, then things need to be discussed with either agency or family/next of kin.

If, on arrival, the carer finds that the client no longer has good, or any, mobility but nothing is in place for this, then it needs to be discussed as soon as possible. To leave things without aides is asking for an accident to happen.

The incoming carer is well within their rights to discuss with the situated carer, exactly what the routine is and what aides are in place. Occasionally agencies do not like the thought of carers talking to each other, but this is a vital part of live-in care. Both carers must know the development of the client and their situation.

Final thoughts

While it is easy to try to lay the blame at someone else's door, the bottom line is that all three parties, namely agency/family or next of kin, situated carer, and incoming carer all have a responsibility to keep each other informed about changes.

Simply because of the nature of live-in care, things very rarely get better or improve. They may plateau for a while, but the inevitability is a downhill slide, sooner or later. 

Being prepared for this, and being well equipped because of timely steps taken will mean a safer environment for both carer and client.

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