Looking after someone 2017, Northern Ireland

Emma’s story 12 My grandma is 74 years old and has dementia. My grandad cares for her during the day, and I care for her in the evening and at weekends. We had assumed that grandad wouldn’t be entitled to any support, especially as the doctors and the people from social services that he deals with every day didn’t mention it. I found out about Upfront in a newsletter from my employer, and decided to give it a go. Using Upfront was simple and straightforward – even my 85-year-old grandad could use it! After completing it together and reading our personalised summary, we realised that grandad could request a carer’s assessment from social services. This has allowed him to support my grandma with specialised respite care, so he can get a well-deserved break and a weekly game of golf! Caring day-in, day-out for my grandma, dealing with her high support needs and aggressive behaviour, affects both our health – without this small amount of respite that my grandad now gets, I believe we would have hit breaking point. Upfront is a free online tool that can help you get straight to the information you need. Visit carersuk.org/upfront to give it a go! Looking after someone carersni.org

Looking after someone 2017, Northern Ireland | Page 12