Hi all - Mum has now been in a nursing home since September and is still paralysed on one side and has little short term memory. The nursing home seem to be providing great basic care and nursing but I just wondered if anyone is also receiving basic physio from nursing home staff? Just getting Mum to regularly stretch and move her ‘good’ left arm - getting her to use her good arm to move her paralysed arm to try and bring it back etc. We are only getting ~ 1 NHS physio session every other month (and nothing for ages now) and so having to pay for two private physio sessions a week - but Mum can be very sleepy and so how beneficial the sessions are varies. I live over 3 hours away and so can’t call in every day to make Mum do some stretching which is frustrating - try and do some over video calls but not the same and often Mum is too tired. Dad sees her most days but he is probably too familiar and Mum often refuses to do anything. I spoke to someone who worked as a nurse in a care home a few decades ago and said that she would do this with patients - but is very aware that things have changed and no-one has time. The staff are generally lovely and caring but they are all so busy. Surely for the amount it costs there should have enough staff to ensure that they have enough time for this…??? any experience or advice? Huge thank you and take care all. x
@Sarahjen I can’t really offer much advice but I’m wondering whether your mum should be in a rehab facility rather than a nursing home. I don’t know much about it but when my mother in law fractured her pelvis she was discharged to a home that did physio etc with her. It was set up for that sort of thing.
Is it worth asking for a care needs assessment & seeing what that says (you may have had one already so apologies if you have).
I know staff in care homes just don’t seem to have to the time for each person that they need. It’s sad to see as you pay a fortune & don’t get what you’d expect for your money.
Probably not much help butva few thoughts from me.
Best wishes
Ann xx
When I was left the hospital with my stroke, I went to a rehab hospital for 3 weeks before I came home. I had intensive theapy–an hour three times a day. There was hardly time for anything else. After coming home I went to rehab two times a week for about 5 months. There werer some patients who were not ready to go home after three weeks, so they went on to some place were they would get more extended care before going home. I hope your mom gets the help she needs. 
Jeanne
We have - they don’t. Any help is via the NHS clinical neuro rehab team but they are very stretched - Mum has been to their rehab unit a few times - and so basically having to pay for a physio…unless we are missing something…
Hi Jeanne - do you know what the ‘some place’ is? We weren’t offered anything - other than to go into a nursing homes (means tested as social care rather than NHS) and very little NHS physio + some NHS occupational health (ended as Mum can swallow and speak). Would be useful to know where the people who couldn’t go home were sent. thank you. x
I’m sure she should be in a rehab facility rather than parked in a nursing home with lots of old ladies - however when this all happened rehab facilities were never mentioned. When she was discharged from hospital to a temporary nursing home the assigned social worker gave us a list of local nursing homes and basically told us to sort out moving Mum to one pronto as they needed her bed. Via google the nearest rehab centre I can find is a private one in Birmingham that costs a LOT and would be too far for Dad to travel each day and so very tricky to know if it would be worth it or whether we continue as we are and hope that with time, rest and some physio she improves…Why isn’t there a simple guide to all this? Seems crazy!
Sorry Sarahjen-- I don’t know where this man I talked to went. It may have been a nursing home., as well. But I got the impression that he would continue to get some rehabilitation. I am in the USA, so maybe the setup is different here. Wish I could help you more. Jeanne