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Care home too cold?
A resident in a care home in North Yorkshire has died from severe hypothermia. The inquest returned a verdict saying that she died as a direct result of the temperature in her room.
So what do you do if you are worried that a care home bedroom is too cold? Of course you speak to the Manager or a member of staff and ask them to turn the radiator up, or in this case on. But what you don't do is leave.
Wait until the radiator and the temperature in the room is at the correct level before you go home. Also remember that you are probably wearing clothes for outside and you may well be boiling hot in the home - but your relative is wearing indoor clothes.
Put yourself in the shoes, or slippers, of your loved one. They are sitting still with probably summer type clothes on. It is vital that they don't get cold. The recommended temperature for a living space is 21C and the absolute minimum temperature to avoid health risks is 18C.
So if you are worried about the temperature in a care home bedroom there really is only one thing to do -
MAKE A FUSS UNTIL IT IS SORTED OUT.
At Chosen with Care we want to inform families, before there is a crisis, about the issues that need to be considered when you are looking for a care home. At a recent care event that we organised, we talked about everything to do with care. At the event we spoke to a lovely couple and received this testimonial - 'My Mum spoke to me for quite a while on Sunday, to say how impressed she had been and how glad they were they had gone along. Both my Nanna and Grandma had dementia before they died and my Uncle has it now. They did not know about the affect small strokes have on developing Dementia and following the advice they received, my Dad is going to attend his doctors and demand an MRI scan, as he had a stroke about a year ago. Thank you from myself as well, this has been really helpfully for my parents.' Jonathan H.