Monthly Archives: July 2018

The Chilling Truth.

Events

I saw my two buddies, Tweedledum and Tweedledumber ( aka Rick and Quentin ) tonight.

As i have a UTI and am on antibiotics, and they aren’t, only 2 of us were  knocking back thé pints. It was a very funny night, as both are dry, but not as dry as I am, but they did their best to constantly take the piss, as only the Best of mates do ( well if you’re from Wales, or The North, anyway )

As they got more pissed,  they started talking about this blog. Quentin has never read it, and Rick says he hasn’t for a year, but both were convinced that I should stop writing it. Understandably, I think, I asked them nicely what qualified them to have a strong opinion on something that they never ( have ) read.

They said it does me no good, essentially, or words to that effect, and asked what was the point of it? I said, as I always say, it’s just my diary and it doesn’t have to have a point, as it was never intended to, and not even started by me. I just sort of inherited it, after I came out of a coma.

Q told me for the first time I’d heard it, what the 4 hours were like in France that I lay in the road, as he was apparently holding my head off the tarmac,  my back broken, lying on 14 broken ribs, and pleading to be moved. ‘Just move me, please’  over and over, along with ‘ when is the ambulance coming ?’ over and over again.

He told me about those hours of trying to get French people to NOT drag me off the road, to let the cars go by faster, and how I’d died in the helicopter, but was brought back, and how that happened again after the heli had landed in Toulon military hospital.

It was chilling stuff, though I listened impassively to it, I have to say, it being from another life almost ( though in fact the first hours of my new life – that of a paralysed person )

Rick asked why on Earth I didn’t know this story? I said that I’m glad I hadn’t known it a year or more ago, as it would have been too sad for me, but tonight I was immune to the horror of it, which represents my ‘ progress ‘ from morbid sadness to actually living again and not thinking about death a whole lot.

They seemed intent on pressing me for a reason for a blog though. I said that it’s really NOT my Raison d’être, and i perhaps spend a few minutes a day on it, sometimes more, but I never ‘plan’ any of the posts, I just write them as the thoughts occur to me. I said I have far, far too many more important things to think about than this blog, which then begged the question of why I bother.

I said that I reckon I include a fair bit about the unpublicised effects of disability, and also that you CAN come back from despair to happiness, and if that helps just one person, then it has actually been ‘ worthwhile ‘. I said I just talk about  stuff that happens to me, that’s all, and the appalling world of the Care industry, which you’d have no clue about unless you were in it. Likewise the transport network, and how it caters ( or not ) for me.

I suggested that they actually read it, rather than condemn it, and they might even learn something… but no, they said they would rather not.

As i dont write it FOR anyone then, I’m not bothered if they read it or if they don’t, but interestingly Rick asked if any of my real friends actually read it. I said that as far as I know, every one of my real friends ( other than them ) does read it, and regularly have a laugh at my little adventures, and possibly a little cry here and there.

Anyway, they seemed determined not to read it for some reason, and that’s fine with me.

As they’re both Wan***s  from the North of England, essentially, they will never know that I just wrote that.. will they ?

😂

From my Ex – Help in Portugal

Events

( About Wendy ) She sounds and looks great Russ – Unlike your carers, if that is the right word. Go private, pay the carer direct. Tell them to register self employed and get two, month on month off. Pay them per day what you pay the agency per day and they will be over the moon. Also my friend, interview loads and pick the right people, infact t pretend you are interviewing for the Yukon 1000. Tell them the good things for them too. Life with Russ is busy but never boring.
Oh, so, also, advertise up North, you will get more bang for your buck. Be good my friend x

Russ, once I have my certificate for Portuguese language ( which is a good way off ) I will come over and do a month for free. I cannot understand why the carers do not want to be out and about. You taught me so much about my own Profession, true my friend.

Be out and about or iron fresh sheets for a man who can’t feel them? Well in my best Scouse it’s a no, or is it no brainer?
X

I will get on my Facebook and see if I can find you a carer and someone who wants to be out and about. I have many friends in the care world. Let’s just see if I can help.

Good Lord

Events

I asked Isabelle what she did in her spare time.

Speaking ever so slowly, she replied ‘ I’ve been really bizzeeee… ‘

I said ‘ doing what?’

Well, I like to reeeaddd

What about ?

Nuffink in particular, jus research, stuff like that.

Oh really, I said, have you done any research on my condition ?

Not yetttt, I been really bizeeeee.

Later on – I asked what she was reading on her phone.

She struggled with the word, saying Para-leeeee sis.

I asked if that was the same as paralysis?

I fink so, yes.

So there’s progress ? Kinda? Not her fault though is it?

CERA – who sell themselves as experts in care, ought be shut down, i feel?

More.

Events

Thé place i live in is blindingly obviously a ‘ new build ‘. They’re building the block next door as I type, with cranes and construction workers everywhere.

Isabelle just asked me ‘ have you lived here all your life ?’

Im 51.

I appreciate her try at conversation, but seriously ?

You just have to stifle what you actually think, pretty much most of the time tbh.

As I said, it’s not her fault, is it?

Part of her job description is to ‘ keep me company ‘.

I have more chance talking to the plants.

A comment.

Events

Hi Russ,

It’s ironic that they call your staff “carers” when any “caring” appears to be sorely lacking.  Here in the US, they use different terminology.  Such as Home Health Aides, for instance, in New York.  The terminology differs from state to state.
I am curious if you have the option of placing your own private adverts and “robustly” interviewing your own staff?  Have you tried college students of various types?  One hopes you’d at least find a certain level of intelligence.  Perhaps those training in physical therapy, sports medicine, or massage therapy?  One hopes they’d at least know what a calf muscle is.
It must all be extremely frustrating for you at times.  You have my sympathy and also my admiration for how well you handle it and carry on in spite of it.  I’d probably be foaming at the mouth in frustration and anger at times.  Which eould probably only make things worse…
So glad to hear you have a new lady friend in your life.  And so sporty, too.

Events
Dawker me old mate
I look at yr blog most days…
Is it possible you’re too demanding of your carers? Appreciate you’re paying but you’ve fallen out with so many that I think maybe you should look at yourself… Maybe work out what works for them as well as you so next time you get a half good ‘un you get a chance to train them up before you lose them?
I’m in the UK second half August – are u around? Not sure where and when(!) I am yet but keen to catch up and see yr gaff!
Cheers dude!
CX
P.S. Wendy sounds a good ‘un. No way I’d have cycled 35 miles! That’s what Uber’s for!
Charlie,

Yes that has occurred to me.

But if you were in it, you’d find it actually hard to believe.
They are often so moronic it defies belief. I don’t suffer fools gladly, let alone imbeciles, Charlie.
I make light of it, or I’d kill one of them I think ?
You have honestly never met anyone as thick as Isabelle, today.
She has to ‘ write a report about me ‘.
It takes her longer to do that than she has actually spent time doing anything for me today.
I get a new one from Poland tomorrow. She is Polish and has learnt English. That puts her in a different league to Isabelle, who is English but can barely speak English.
If you had her ‘looking after’ you I can GUARANTEE that it would drive you insane, matey.
Yes, I’m damned by being intelligent, in this game. All their other ‘ clients ‘ are old and ‘ senile’ or mentally disabled. That makes me ‘ challenging ‘.
I can hear their ‘ routine ‘ …
They look at me and slowly say ‘ hello…. how are you today…? Have you been out at all…. when I briefly mention just a tenth of what I’ve done that day, they are struck dumb, and clearly fazed.
I just asked Isabelle again about ‘paraplegia’.
She slowly said it…. obviously for the first time. She’d never heard the word before. That’s scary, mate.
How can they send me a ‘ carer’ who has absolutely no clue about my condition ?
Thé agency are clearly at fault for just taking on anyone at all, the uneducated and unemployable in any other walk of life.
Is it the carer’s fault that she’s so thick ? Not really – that’s genetic. Am I right to get frustrated ? Yes – that comes from conditioning. Im conditioned to expect people who work for me to be capable of doing the job, and im conditioned to have reasonable expectations, and  reserve the right to be dissatisfied with crap service.
Hope that answers your question, buddy.
Love,
Russ
Sent from my iPhone 9.6 prototype.

Not atypical.

Events

Ive had a carer called Isabelle a few times this week. Blimey, she takes being thick to whole new levels.
All hair and handbag, she is the 27 year old i mentioned previously.

I tried to engage her in conversation, and asked if she was married or anything. She told me that she had been seeing a footballer for about 2 years. I tried not to stereotype her ( but actually I should have )
I asked how they’d met. She said ‘ on Insta’. It occurred to me that she would just ASSUME that I would be familiar with Insta… to the degree that if I wasn’t she’d have thought ‘ are you really fick or sumfing ?!’
You have to bear in mind the irony, when a few minutes later i asked her if she’d massage my calf muscle to stop my spasms, and she said ‘ what’s a carrrf mussel ?’

How can people like her, whose first language is English, be put in charge of looking after anyone at all with any kind of medical condition? What if I’d said ‘ I have a staphylococcal infestation ‘ or something ? For absolutely sure she would have looked completely blankly at me, and assumed I was delirious ( or sumfink )

I can joke about this, but seriously, someone that thick and someone with a medical problem, is a potentially lethal situation.

As The Kaiser Chiefs sang ‘ It’s cool to know nothing, it’s cool to know nothing… ‘

I have a UTI btw. I told her just now. She said nothing at all, so I asked if she’d heard me. She said ‘yes’ It was apparent to me that she either had no idea what it was, or had zero interest.

Carer? I think the clue should be in the Job title….?

You cannot be CERA us?

Events
Russ Dawki Russ Dawkins

Jul 23, 10:12 AM BST

Sirs,

I read some of the ‘ care reports ‘

I think you need to have an option for the clients to write reports about the Carers.
The things written are often very inaccurate, and totally subjective, obviously.
As the Carers often have very poor literary skills, they make for confusing reading indeed.
I have serious issues with being described as I am sometimes.
The incompetence of many of your Carers is a huge issue.
The quality of your staff is what you need to address, rather than any ‘ mood analysis ‘ of a highly intelligent client by a very low intelligence Carer.
I note that you don’t actually sign off any of their reports at all?
Surely that is very contrary to the QCC guidance?
Martin May Martin Mayega (Cera)

Jul 23, 3:31 PM BST

Dear Mr. Dawkins

My name is Martin Mayega, and I am the registered Manager for Cera care.

Thanks ever so much for your candid feedback concerning the carer reports.

Part of the reason for making reports accessible to clients is to encourage transparency, dialogue and a sense of inclusion.
There have been many occasions where service user families have benefited a lot from some of the information that carers have shared within the reports. It is rather unfortunate that your experience on this occasion has not been as positive as we all would have hoped.

Concerning the quality and calibre of the reports, we do review them on an on-going basis. CQC requires us to review and sign off the content of our reports on a monthly basis and the nature of our care reports gives us an opportunity to review and sign them off even sooner. All our care reports are reviewed and signed off by either our Clinical Services Manager or Registered Manager within a period of one month or less.

As part of our sign off process, we write to some carers and invite others for supervisions in the event we realise that their care reports do not represent the standards set by Cera care. We have sent out newsletter articles in the past, emphasising the quality and accuracy of the care reports, and part of our Induction training involves taking carers through the process of completing the care reports.

We will be reviewing the care reports in this package and we will be addressing your concerns as a result.

Regarding the quality of our staff, we do take your observation on board. Apart from our robust selection process, which involves obtaining satisfactory references and ensuring the right level of experience, our Induction training takes four days and that includes a day’s medication training. An area we are continually working on is that of matching the right candidate to the right client. In some instances, it is just a question of both the service user and the carer gelling well from the outset. In some instances, this may not happen and this is where an honest feedback from either the carer or the service user becomes useful in ensuring that we address the situation sooner rather than later.

Kind regards

Martin K. Mayega

Dear Martin,

I’d dearly love to see your ‘ robust selection process ‘ for myself. As a business owner of many years, I can truly say that I would take on very few of your staff even for the most menial of tasks.
Some are ‘ capable ‘ but unwilling, and the majority are largely ‘ incapable ‘.
I realise that I am unusual as a client, as I’m not old or feeble or both, rather I have my own mind and my own standards, including expectations of staff working attitude.
Your carers are clearly unnerved by me, as they are used to being in the dominant role and not being challenged in any way at all, in terms of how they perform.
In plain English, when I ask them to do something in a different ( and more logical and effective manner ) they really don’t like it, rather than learning from someone who is suggesting a better method.
Ref thé care reports on me, NONE of mine, going back years, have been signed off. This is extremely poor practice.
I recently saw your nurse. Her findings have NOT been implemented at all. The staff dont even ask about my medications, let alone offer them to me? If I had dementia I’d be at severe risk, for sure. Most of your carers have little or no regard for standards, and you do NOT check on them.
May i suggest that you actually ask the clients what they think ?
In my opinion CERA should be closed down as a Care Agency, as it fails on so many levels.
I shall be moving on on Wednesday, but remain scarred by the care quality you have ( NOT ) provided.
Yours sincerely,
Russell Dawkins

Blimey

Events

Current ‘ carer’ is Harriet. Thé other day she did a shift and was ever so cheerful. Now she isn’t at all, so I asked her what was wrong.

She said ‘ nothing ‘.

I asked why she wasn’t cheerful anymore. Eventually she said that her cheeriness has ‘ been nipped’. I asked her to explain.

She said that I’d ‘ asked her to do a million jobs at once’ I asked for an example. She said ‘ well I was cleaning the hot stone thing ( it’s a foot square of 1cm granite )  and you asked me to make you a cup of tea. I said ‘ and? ‘

She Saïd that that was too much for her.

I pointed out that the kettle was right next to where she was, and it was mostly just a case of switching it on, wasn’t it? She said she didn’t have clean hands. Well they would probably have been soapy to be honest, so it’s a quick dry and flick the kettle switch, isn’t it?

Well apparently it’s not that simple. She was upset apparently, and 3 days later she still is. What if I’d been an abusive old man with dementia, not really knowing what I was saying ? Would that have resulted in her not being nice to me anymore ? I just don’t know. At least I have the  wherewithal to speak and communicate.

Because I HAVENT got dementia and I asked for a cup of tea, and expected her to multitask, apparently I’m unreasonable? I guess that tars every single person who has ever said ‘ while you’re in the kitchen darling Would you make me a cuppa ?’  Carers evidently get away with being in sole charge of the demented and disabled, and obviously being in whatever mood they choose ? That’s just wrong. What happened to compassion, and in my case, as I’m paying, what happened to ‘ the customer is always right ‘ ?