When Charlie moved into a residential aged care home they continued to see the family GP they had been to for many years. When their GP retired, the staff at the residential care home convinced Charlie that they should now see the GP who serviced the home, which they did.
Unfortunately, Charlie did not feel that the new GP was understanding of their issues and didn’t feel they were being given adequate care. They were in pain, and it wasn’t getting any better. They asked the staff to help them find another GP but was not assisted.
Determined to live pain-free and to get help, Charlie called Advocacy Tasmania and was connected with Mark, an aged care Advocate.
After listening to Charlie’s story, and explaining the Charter of Aged Care Rights, Mark outlined a number of options for Charlie including help with arranging a meeting with the residential care home’s management to discuss their issues.
Charlie directed Mark to arrange the meeting, and requested that he also attend as their independent support person. Charlie decided that they wanted to speak for themselves, and if they failed to mention any of the points they had prepared, Mark was to prompt them.
When they met with the management team, Charlie was relieved that they were receptive to feedback, which included that communication between the facility and their residents could be improved.
Charlie has since been assisted in finding a new GP, their care plan has been reviewed and the changes have resulted in improvements to Charlie’s mobility through better pain management.
Mark said he saw a dramatic change in Charlie from when they first met, “Once Charlie felt they had support, they developed confidence to speak for themself and got great results, and the facility now has an open door policy for their residents, which they put in place after our meeting.”
If you, or someone you know, could benefit from someone like Mark to help them realise their rights, then please get in touch.