Peter’s story: “Passing the baton of care from his family to ours.”
Peter and his wife, Linda, moved next door to Peter’s parents’ house when his mother was in the early stages of dementia, and Peter’s wife cared for her mother-in-law until she passed away. Then, when his father started to require extra care, Peter stepped in and became the main caregiver as his father initially wished to stay in his home. The family carried out renovations to make the house safer for hims.
“My wife had done a wonderful job of caring for my mother, so when Dad started to need help, it was my turn,” says Peter. Peter’s father attended HBH’s Day Programme and Peter would start work “extremely early” so he could be home in time for his father’s return. “We’d have a cup of tea when he returned and then I’d come back a bit later to prepare his dinner and help him get ready for bed.”
“Dad was still mentally sharp, but he was beginning to lose his short-term memory and his mobility started to decline after a knee operation,” he says. It got to the stage where Peter’s father needed full time care and the family began their search for a care home that would provide him with “the very best care”.
“We got together as a family and wrote a list of criteria to evaluate the different homes we visited,” explains Peter. “An important part of the criteria was that Dad would be looked after as well as we had cared for him as a family. We were very thorough, and after each visit we would check each home against the criteria.” The process made decision-making extremely easy. “Once we had a shortlist, we visited those facilities again before making our decision.”
Peter said there was no question that HBH was best option, by a long shot. “The staff were the standout – they were so friendly, caring and welcoming each time we visited. You could tell the other residents were happy there and that it really was a home away from home,” he enthuses. “Dad was very happy at HBH and that was mainly down to the staff. They are very caring people and that’s what you want for your parents.”