Ride Along with a Responder
2nd December 2016
The Mobile Carers at Medvivo are a team of highly trained social care responders who visit customers or service users in the home. Following a call into our Telecare Alarm Monitoring Centre recently, I had the opportunity to ride along with one of our mobile carers to find out more about this service.
Following an alert received into our Alarm Monitoring Centre, we were made aware of a customer who had fallen. It was a non-injury fall and as we had been unable to get in touch with a friend, relative or carer from their list of contacts, we put a call out to our mobile carer team. John picked up the call and immediately headed out to the Responder Car (picking me up en route!)
As we headed out to Royal Wootton Bassett, John explained how the customer's telecare alarm had activated and the call centre had been able to make contact with Mr X to establish that he had fallen and required assistance. Although he had fallen, the call advisor was able to confirm that it was a non-injury fall and no medical assistance was required - in which case we would have contacted the emergency services, and potentially still headed out to see the customer while they waited for the ambulance to arrive. Our target time for arriving to take care of Mr X was 45-60 minutes!
As we arrived, I was quite nervous, not sure what to expect. What had happened to make the customer fall, would he still be OK after waiting for us to arrive, what state would he be in and would I cope seeing this? As you'd expect, John was quite calm and put my mind at rest, reassuring me that I didn't need to stay for the whole visit, but to think how it would be for the customer - when you're stuck on the floor with no-one around, minutes really can feel like hours, plus it would be an extra bit of company for what might otherwise be quite a lonely day.
We were able to gain entry as Mr X has a key safe. Once inside, we found Mr X sat on the floor, looking safe and well. John following a standard procedure, including:
- Contacting the call centre to advise of our arrival and confirm Mr X was being looked after
- Checking the customer's wellbeing and confirming there were no signs of new injuries or illness
- Completing a FAST (Facial Weakness, Arm Weakness, Speech Problems and Time) test to check there were no signs of a stroke (check out the video below from Public Health England)
With no additional concerns, as Mr X had full movement capability and no new pain, John set about with the lift process using the Mangar Elk. Once fully lifted Mr X was able to walk back to his chair with normal mobility and the help of his usual walking frame.
Throughout the visit Mr X appeared quite at ease and happily recounted various stories about his past, his home and family. It was almost a shame to have to leave him, but his domiciliary carer had arrived to prepare lunch. So we all shook hands, wished each other well and said goodbye.
Overall it took about 30 minutes to get to the call, and we spent approximately 20 minutes with the customer. He was content and comfortable when we left, and even though I was only there as an observer, it was quite humbling that for a few minutes you had really helped someone and made a significant difference to their day. On the return journey, John told me that that feeling is why he loves being a mobile carer, and wouldn't swap his job for the world.
The mobile carer team also respond to non-injury falls from the ambulance service and can provide urgent care at home when required within the community for up to 72 hours. If you'd like to read more about being a responder, read John's blog about being a mobile responder!
By Karen Manning, Corporate Communications Coordinator
About Karen
With a background in marketing communications and a general interest in health and care, Karen was keen to continue her career with Medvivo. She has a passion for the digital world and enjoys working on getting the most out of websites, writing content and using social media.
In her spare time, Karen volunteers at the local hospital as a patient befriender and does a lot of fun running to raise money for charities. She enjoys reading, writing, cooking, listening to music as well as keeping fit.
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