Confusion and worry is continuing for a disabled Fife man told his care at home package is to be cut – amid growing pressure on Fife social care.
David Park from Guardbridge is in a wheelchair due to left-sided paralysis after a stroke.
He did not know whether carers would come to his home this week after Glenrothes firm G&J Care said they were unable to continue his care.
David, 57, says Fife Council told him last week they have too many patients under their care to continue to provide a twice-daily service for him.
He explains: “I have now been told I’ll get one visit a day instead of two, except on Mondays and Fridays when someone will call in the morning and evening.
‘They said I don’t take a shower every day’
“It’s not the carers I blame for this. They are brilliant. But the bosses don’t seem to know what they are doing.”
Despite an assessor coming just last week, a second assessor went to see David on Monday.
“They said they’d looked at previous care and I hadn’t always taken a shower every day,” says David. “I said I may not manage a shower every single day, I still need assistance.
“I’ll get one visit from a carer most of the days. That’s instead of the two daily visits I’ve been getting for the last three years since I got out of hospital.”
David has issues with his lower legs and needs cream applied and support socks. He fears he could take a tumble out of his wheelchair and he feels stressed.
‘Who am I supposed to go to?’
“The system is a joke. They seem to be good at passing the buck.
“I’ve been up to high-doh not knowing what was going on. I can’t get to sleep thinking about it.
He continues: “It annoys me that these professionals come out with condescending answers. They just keep saying they’re under pressure because of the pandemic. But I was receiving care exactly the same up to now and during the pandemic.
“They say they can’t cover it. But I don’t understand. The care company said they didn’t have enough work but the council has too much.
“Who am I supposed to go to? Who do I speak to?
“No matter who I speak to I get the same answers about the pandemic or lack of money. I think they need to sort the top of the tree out and give people the truth.”
‘Extremely challenging time’
David’s story is just one of many among vulnerable people in Fife. Social care is under immense pressure due to staff shortages and rising numbers of people needing care at home.
Fiona Mckay, Head of Planning, Performance and Commissioning, Fife Health & Social Care Partnership says: “Covid-19 continues to impact across the whole health and social care system and the demand for care at home packages is unprecedented.
“If an independent provider can no longer provide care to a service user, we work closely with the provider and service user to find an alternative care solution.
“Ensuring our most vulnerable people have the care they need is a priority. And our staff are working extremely hard to meet the needs of service users during this extremely challenging time.”