A Dundee man says he had no option but to look after his friend with dementia overnight, after no alternative care could be found for him.
Colin Campbell, 84, had to take in friend, Ian Fyffe, overnight when Ian’s wife Kathleen was rushed to hospital after falling.
Ian, 79, has dementia and Kathleen, 75, is his carer. Due to his condition, Ian cannot be left alone.
Colin, whose wife also has dementia, stepped in to try and find Ian a bed for the night in care.
He explains: “We met through Alzheimer’s Scotland in Dundee a number of years ago now.
“We support each other – Kathleen will look after my wife if I need to go somewhere and vice versa.
“On July 30, I got a phone call from a friend of Kathleen’s around lunchtime to say she’d fallen off a ladder and was in agony.
“I came over and sat with Ian while her friend took her to A&E at Ninewells. It turned out she was going to be kept in overnight.
“Social work was informed to try and get an emergency bed for Ian overnight.”
‘I got a phone call at 10.30pm’
Colin didn’t expect a bed to be found immediately for his friend, but was surprised as time went on there was nowhere for him to go.
Colin, from Dundee, continues: “Social work kept phoning me – I think they went through about three shifts of social workers, each saying they were trying to find somewhere for him.
“By about 10.30pm, I got a phone call saying they still hadn’t got a place and they apologised.
“By that point, Ian was sleeping and I told them to forget it because he was in my house. I’d got my wife to bed so she was fine.
“When Ian goes to bed, he can get up and walk through the night, wandering to the toilet or walking about confused.
“That was the problem I had, trying to deal with that and my wife. It was an interesting night, shall we say.”
‘Had I not been available, what would have happened?’
The next morning, Kathleen was released from hospital with what turned out to be bruised ribs.
Colin says: “Social work arranged for someone to come in and look after Ian in the night and the morning, washing him and dressing him and so on.
“Then he was due to go into Carmichael House for respite. They got him in there on the Monday and managed to keep him there until his formal respite started.
“So, it worked out OK in the end, but it’s the fact that in an emergency, there was no one to take him in and look after him.
“Had I not been available, what would have happened that night?”
‘This is the reality we face’
Colin believes the situation is just another example of how carers are treated across the country.
He says: “The sad thing is, we keep being told us carers need to look after ourselves and how important we are.
“But, when push comes to shove, I suppose this is the reality we face.
“What would have happened if there was nobody around to look after him? Would he have been taken to hospital with his wife?
“Then they would have had to deal with him at hospital and that’s another bed taken up unnecessarily.
“I’m not faulting the social workers, they tried and were into double figures with people trying to get a placement.
“I just would have thought there was emergency care available for a situation like this.”
‘Work closely with family and friends’
A spokesperson for Dundee Health and Social Care Partnership says: “While we would not comment on individual cases, in a crisis situation we will work closely with families and friends and look to ensure additional support is provided for those offering assistance for individuals.”
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