The aides are independent caregivers. One of them was not there when my mom fell and thank God she is ok. This aide is bossy and I don't like her but my father is the one who hired her and he thinks she is for my mother.
My mother has fallen 55x in Assisted Living and now Memory Care. There is no way to prevent it, in reality. If you don't like the care giver, talk to your father about replacing her, but even if you find one you love, you can't expect her to prevent your mother from falling. It's quite literally impossible, unless the elder is strapped down in a bed 24/7!
Laura, a love one can fall just as easily being cared for by someone in the family. So unless the person doing the caring is glued to the hip with the elder, even then both could fall.
My Dad got caregivers from an Agency as he was a major fall risk. These caregivers were quite skilled in caregiving, knowing how to manage any situation. They would take restroom breaks when Dad was dozing in his recliner. If they needed to be out of the room to do laundry or to get lunch or dinner ready, they told Dad he must stay in his recliner, but call out if he needed help with anything. Dad was good at obeying their requests.
Prior to the above, my Mom refused any and all caregivers. She said that my Dad could catch her before she completely fell, yeah right, both were in their 90's. Plus Dad had packed away his Super Man outfit decades ago. It would have taken Dad 3 to 5 minutes just to get up out of his chair.
Even with the best of care falls will still happen. Has dad provided these caregivers training on how to catch someone that is falling? Are these caregivers paid legally as employees of mom and dad? Is there caregiver contracts that list what the responsibilities are? Does it list fall prevention?
Has dad consulted about elder law attorney or labor attorney to learn what his obligations are as an employer? An elder law attorney in this case may be a one stop shop.
He needs to protect himself and the caregivers. If caregiver suffered an injury trying to keep mom from falling dad could open himself up to a lawsuit that his homeowners insurance would not cover without a workman's comp and liability rider. Does he have an umbrella policy?
Expecting a caregiver to prevent falls is unreasonable.
It's tough to "catch" a falling adult. Best that can be done is to guide the person to the floor (and that may not be possible either). Stopping someone from falling once they are already mid-fall is nearly impossible and could result in a serious, career-ending injury to the caregiver. Some patients need someone nearby with a wheelchair when they are up and around, but to have someone constantly standing there to keep them upright and stop all falls would be difficult.
People fall even when a caregiver or other person is standing a few inches a way. You really can’t prevent a fall. It’s not really realistic to expect the caregiver to catch your mom and seeing as how she’s employed by your dad and not an agency, you and your dad should be concerned about the caregiver being injured in the home while attempting to catch your mom. Did your dad take out a workman’s comp policy? Did he call his homeowners insurance to ensure it will cover (or add the appropriate coverage) an injured household worker?
Older people can fall even with the best of care. Sometimes they fall when when you are standing in the same room of even are right beside them, I know because my mom fell on me more than once.
Laura, it will help us if you combine your several questions in future into one post. Is the agency aware that your requirement of a caregiver is that she is beside your Mom every moment your Mom is out of bed? I join you in being so thankful she is not injured. Are you in charge of the expectations of the caregivers? If so, then speak with the aid and the agency. If you are NOT in charge of the Aid and the situation, then allow the person who IS in charge to take care of all these issues.
My Dad got caregivers from an Agency as he was a major fall risk. These caregivers were quite skilled in caregiving, knowing how to manage any situation. They would take restroom breaks when Dad was dozing in his recliner. If they needed to be out of the room to do laundry or to get lunch or dinner ready, they told Dad he must stay in his recliner, but call out if he needed help with anything. Dad was good at obeying their requests.
Prior to the above, my Mom refused any and all caregivers. She said that my Dad could catch her before she completely fell, yeah right, both were in their 90's. Plus Dad had packed away his Super Man outfit decades ago. It would have taken Dad 3 to 5 minutes just to get up out of his chair.
We have a friend in a nursing home, 2 aides were attending to her in the bathroom, our friend fell. It was not one's fault.
If a person is going to fall, they are going to fall. We can encourage them to use grab bars, walkers and other stability aids, but that is all.
Has dad consulted about elder law attorney or labor attorney to learn what his obligations are as an employer? An elder law attorney in this case may be a one stop shop.
He needs to protect himself and the caregivers. If caregiver suffered an injury trying to keep mom from falling dad could open himself up to a lawsuit that his homeowners insurance would not cover without a workman's comp and liability rider. Does he have an umbrella policy?
Expecting a caregiver to prevent falls is unreasonable.
Is the agency aware that your requirement of a caregiver is that she is beside your Mom every moment your Mom is out of bed?
I join you in being so thankful she is not injured.
Are you in charge of the expectations of the caregivers? If so, then speak with the aid and the agency. If you are NOT in charge of the Aid and the situation, then allow the person who IS in charge to take care of all these issues.