Ensuring a continuity of care

The Good Care Group’s professional care services extend beyond our specialist dementia care, to include cancer care, stroke care and other complex needs. We also service couples with different care needs, allowing them to stay in their home together. For example, couple D and S who we supported and continue to support through very different care journeys.

S contacted us after her diagnosis with cancer. Her husband D was living with Alzheimer’s disease and S was currently his sole Carer. S understood the journey infront of her, the effects her treatment would have on her physically and mentally and the possible outcome of her diagnosis. She wanted a comprehensive care team in place that could support her husband and ultimately her when the time came.

The Good Care Group initially stepped in to care for D and support him with his Alzheimer’s, then over time the live-in care team provided S with care and support. The Good Care Group ensured that the care team included a driver, as supporting S with her medical appointments was an important part of her care plan.

The Carers in place took it upon themselves to make notes on the information the doctor’s were providing her when accompanying S to her treatment and appointments. This helped S immensely, as many of the appointments were medically informative and could be an information overload. To help S understand the terminology she was presented with, The Good Care Group’s Consultant Admiral Nurse, Dr Jane Pritchard, explained the terminology to S over time, so she could make an informed decision about her treatment choices.

The most important aspect of S outsourcing her care was that her daughters could continue just being her daughters. S did not want her care to be the responsibility of her family and having her Live-in Carers was the ideal solution. In addition, S wanted to ensure there was a continuity of care for her husband once she had died.

S’s cancer progressed aggressively and the decision was made to stop treatment and live a life of quality not quantity. Nearing the end, The Good Care Group worked with Marie Curie to bring the hospice to her home. S briefed her Live-in Carers about the meals she had once cooked for her husband and how to care for her beloved dog, which gave her peace of mind that they would not be left uncared for after she died.

S died peacefully in her home with her loved ones around her, knowing that everything was in place to ensure her husband continued to receive the care he required. The Good Care Group are continuing to care for D, ensuring he receives the best care possible, including enjoying the meals his wife used to prepare.