Family Testimonials

If a member of your family lives alone, and is becoming forgetful, you are probably anxious about them a lot of the time.

It is natural to fear the worst when someone you love is losing their mental sharpness, but contrary to expectation, people with dementia or short term memory problems often maintain a good daily routine when they are in their own home where they are relaxed and orientated. Familiar surroundings provide cues and reminders and you may find that the person you are worrying about is managing better than you think. Just Checking will give an objective view of how someone is operating at home.

Most people want to stay in their own home for as long as possible, and indeed a move can add to confusion and deterioration. Just Checking can help you to focus on what a person can still do for themselves, and to support them with reminders and social activities. And if things change you can step in when you are needed.

We think it’s best if you hear from other family carers who are in the same situation.

"I’ve got my life back. I was popping into my mother’s house several times a day because I was so worried about her. Now I can log on first thing in the morning to see what type of night she has had, and if all is well, I take the children to school before calling in. I’m better able to manage after school activities with my children and I am even getting to the gym."

Suzanne Hughes, daughter, Essex.

"I have written to the local authority (who first provided Just Checking) to tell them what an excellent system this is."

Charlie Sheldon, brother, Waltham Forest.

"This system has taken 80% of the weight off my shoulders. My mother is not going out at night except when she pops next door to spend the evening with her neighbour. She’s going to bed and sleeping well. I work for myself and I usually pop over each day. Now I can see what time suits mum, so that the visit is enjoyable and I am not dropping in at a time that makes her all flustered. At 92 she’s still managing fine."

James Hewell, son, Bristol.

"I can see when the home care visit has been made in the morning, and when my father has been out to the newsagent to collect his newspaper, which he likes to do. He has a digestive problem which sometimes flairs up and I was able to spot when he needed medical attention after a very disturbed night when he spent a lot of time in the bathroom. This system has been a life calmer! Excellent. I tell everyone about it."

Liz Saunders, daughter, South Gloucestershire.

"Peace of mind. That’s the greatest thing. My brother, who lives in New Zealand also logs on each day. It helps to share the emotional load. If, in the future, Mum needs a higher level of care, my brother will be able to see it for himself and will support me in a decision to find suitable residential care. I won't have to persuade him that the time has come."

Caroline Talbot, daughter, Warwickshire.

"Without Just Checking we would have gone down the route of residential care sooner. The system helped us know what was happening in my dad’s home, and to support him at home for longer."

Rachel Poole, daughter, Derby.

"Quite tremendous. When Just Checking was installed we thought it would be a matter of weeks before mum would have to move to residential care. But we were able to support her at home for over 9 months."

Sarah Palmer, daughter, Birmingham.

"Over 3 years Just Checking enabled my partner and me (in Scotland) to keep an eye on my frail elderly mother (in Kent) from a distance of 500 hundred miles. We set up a network of her neighbours and friends as an 'Invisible Support System', so that all would know who else was helping and how to contact us when needed.  We combined this with monthly visits so that she got support and the odd bit of practical assistance.  Mum was fiercely independent and did not feel there was anything amiss, so we had to come to terms with the way forward being:

• Hands-off, light touch support and checking of welfare
• Accepting that taking some ordinary risks is part of normal life
• Maintaining life in one’s own home is the main aim.

The result was that she was able to enjoy her familiar surroundings and routines with dignity and independence, right up until the very end. Just Checking enabled us to maintain our own physical health and emotional capacity to help, and continue to work and earn money to support our own lives and our caring. Without Just Checking there would have been a very much worse balance between our own needs and hers, a much heavier impact on our own health, and over time a gradual deterioration in our ability to maintain a caring role."

Nick McBain, son, Scotland