Community Care Magazine for Elderly and Disabled: GAZETTE No.51JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2007 Happy New Year to all our Readers Millions of people travelled over the Christmas and New Year period and many would have found the public toilet facilities they had to use not quite as they would have liked. If, however, you are a disabled person you can have access to toilets that have not been vandalized or misused. In fact, there are over 7000 toilets in the UK that are only available to disabled people who hold a key. The Radar National Key Scheme and the National Key Scheme Guide will give you access and directions to toilets throughout the UK. To become a member of the scheme and obtain the key and directory contact your local authority or Age Concern. If you have difficulty then contact RADAR direct on 020 7250 3222. Poetic Carers As in the last issue we brought you a carer's poem, the following comes from a carer who has just retired from Able Community Care. A Poem for Able
Billinge was the last. And in between was everywhere, The years went by too fast. I remember every client, And all their families too, All those happy working days, So I am thanking you. If I had a problem, I only had to ring, Someone would always help me out, With almost everything. But! Directions were the hardest, If you have not received your Winter Fuel Payment but feel sure you are entitled to one, you have until 30th March 2007 to make a claim. The telephone number to ring is 08459 15 15 15. Drinking from a Ceramic Cup Many drinking cups that are manufactured for people with a disability are plastic and look like a baby's cup. The company "yourable" sells a ceramic microwave and dishwasher safe cup and saucer with a neat flower design on it. It has two handles which are designed to offer several gripping positions. For a nicer alternative to the plastic cup visit their website at www.yourableshop.co.uk and look for two handled cup and saucer, price £14.09. Or you can call the company on 01384 473728 and request their catalogue. Direct Payments Direct Payments give people the option to choose, manage and pay for their own care rather than have it arranged for them by their local authority. The payments come from the Local Authority direct to you. Not very many people over the age of 65 years take up the option of receiving the payments. The main reason seems to be that they are not able to understand exactly how the system works and therefore have a fear of it. In order to try and change people's ideas of what Direct Payments are about and to try and encourage people to choose, manage and pay for their own care, Age Concern have produced a DVD, entitled "Your Care, Your Choice: Direct Payments Working for You." It gives examples of people who use this method to pay for care, how beneficial they have found it and gives advice on how to manage the paperwork, etc. If you would like a copy of this DVD give your local Age Concern a ring. Amazing Facts The human body contains approx. 650 muscles, 100 joints and 206 bones (nearly half of them in the hands and feet). You are born with 300 bones at birth but 94 fuse together during childhood. Have A Look What Is On Offer Easier living products are meant to provide practical solutions to the problems of everyday living. Whether through age or disability small things can cause frustration and annoyance e.g. not being able to open a jar or tin, or not being able to get into the bath as easily as you did a few years ago. New products, that might be of help, come on to the market monthly. To find out what is available you may like to visit a Disabled Living Centre. At a Centre you have the opportunity to try out their wide range of products and speak to people who can provide expert advice and information. Disabled Living Centres are scattered about the country. To find the nearest one telephone 0870 770 2866 or visit: http://lut.ac.uk/info/usabilitynet/dlcc.html Keeping Warm in Winter Weather Keeping warm during the cold weather is helped by having a balanced diet. Try to eat at least one thing, every day, from the following five food groups (Source DOH):
Cabbage Cabbage is one of the oldest known vegetables and it is believed that it was part of the Chinese diet thousands of years ago. At this time of year varieties of cabbage are plentiful and as a cabbage contains iron, potassium, many vitamins and is low in calories it should be part of our diet during these winter months. The smell that many people associate with cooking cabbage is caused by the cabbage being cooked for too long a period and as a result sulphur is released, hence the smell. Cabbages, apart from red cabbage, need only a brief cooking period and so are excellent to stir fry or steam. Cabbage soup is both nutritional and warming and the following recipe is from Brian Turner from Ready Steady Cook (BBC). Cabbage Soup (for one) Ingredients:
Friends of the Earth would like us all to become greener in 2007 and in an attempt to achieve this they can send you a tip a day direct to your computer. Just go to their website www.foe.co.uk and sign up. Examples of the kind of tip they can send you are:
We recently came across some unusual uses for banana skins. We have not tried out these ourselves so if any reader does and they work, please let us know! Bananas contain potassium and potassium is good for roses. So, chop up your old skins and place them round the base of your roses for a better floral display in 2007. Apparently, if the inside of the skin is rubbed on a wart for a few days, the wart will disappear. If your black shoes need a shine and you have run out of polish, rub the inside of the skin on the leather for a beautiful shine. Smelling Salts Smelling Salts, which is a combination of ammonium carbonate and perfume or Sal Volatile (pronounced vo-lat-ily) which is also made from ammonium carbonate have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years. In Victorian times for example, ladies would carry smelling salts in little containers in their necklace, rings or muffs. This was not only to revive them if they felt faint, but also so that they could discreetly place it to their noises as they walked around city streets where many unpleasant smells abounded, especially in hot weather. Sal Volatile is mentioned as a restorative in books such as the Pickwick Papers and Alice in Wonderland. On a health front smelling salts have a use for people who suffer from catarrh and head colds. A medically recommended sniff can clear blocked noses very effectively. They are still used by sportsmen seeking a quick revival, e.g. on the football field. Smelling salts can still be purchased, in a bottle with labeling very similar to those sold seventy years ago. One brand that is currently available is from a company called Mackenzies which can be obtained from your local chemist. Occupational Therapists Buying furniture and equipment for elderly and disabled people, thus enabling a person to live more independently, is easier than many years ago as there are many companies who sell such goods. However, buying a piece of equipment without advice and getting it wrong can cause different problems to the ones you were trying to solve. In a Community Care Assessment it can be part of the assessment process that an Occupational Therapist will be there to give advice and suggestions on the most appropriate piece of furniture or aid. However, there is now a waiting list in some areas for the input of an OT that can be up to 18 months. If you do not wish to wait this length of time for professional advice you may wish to obtain the services of an OT yourself to enable you to make the right choice quicker. You can do this by contacting the Occupational Therapists in Independent Practice (UK) on 08003894873 or by going to their website at www.otip.co.uk They can give you details of the nearest practitioner to you. Joke for the New Year Question - What goes up and never comes down? Special Thanks It is with pleasure that we publicly thank Carers Bob Brown and Pat Findon for the exceptional care they recently gave to their clients. We were requested to place these thanks in this Gazette by a family member and a social worker.
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