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Macmillan and Cancerbackup merged in 2008. Together we provide free, high quality information for people affected by cancer through our publications, website and phone service. Find out more|.
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A social worker (now sometimes called a care manager) can help with many practical needs. If you don’t already have a social worker, your GP or a nurse involved in the care of your relative, can arrange a referral. Social workers are responsible for assessing what practical and social help you, and the person who is ill, need. They also organise and coordinate the help from a variety of different sources. It may be that some help can be provided directly by the social services department, and other kinds of help brought in on your behalf.
Some of the services that social workers can arrange include:
In addition, many social workers are trained in counselling skills and can offer you emotional support.
Your social worker will stay in touch with you once the various services have been set up, to check that the arrangements are working and that your needs haven't changed.
If you have been assessed as having a need for social services, you may be entitled to get direct payments from your local authority. This means that you are given payments to organise care services yourself, rather than the local social services organising and paying for them for you. You can get information about direct payments from the Department of Health website at www.dh.gov.uk| or from your local social security office.
You should have a social worker/care manager assigned to you. If not, tell your GP or district nurse, or contact social services. Their number is in the phone book under the name of your local authority.
Home-helps usually provide help with things like housework, shopping and cooking. They are also called domiciliary care assistants, home care assistants or community care assistants.
Personal care assistants usually provide help with tasks such as washing and dressing people, although they may also help out with housework and shopping if asked.
Many local authorities are gradually combining the work of home-helps and personal care assistants into one job. In many areas, home care is now mainly concerned with personal care tasks. If you only need help with the housework and shopping, it may be provided by social services through an agency, or you may have to make independent arrangements.
You may be asked to make a contribution towards the cost of this kind of help, if you can.
If you can afford it, you can get private domestic help by contacting a cleaning agency, or by putting an advertisement in a local paper or a shop window. If you organise domestic help yourself, make sure you check the person's references before employing them.
If there is no local service, Macmillan Cancer Support| will sometimes give grants to cover the cost of a private home-help.
A care attendant is a trained person who can come into your home and give a range of help including light housework, help with washing and dressing, sitting with the person you are caring for, or simply chatting to both of you. In some cases, a care attendant can stay overnight, letting you sleep undisturbed.
Care attendant schemes are run by voluntary organisations, health services, social services or a combination of these. You may have to pay for a care attendant if you can afford it.
To find out about having a care attendant, ask your GP, district nurse, home care team or social worker. You could also contact Crossroads|. In some areas, there is a waiting list for getting help from a care attendant, so it’s worth asking as soon as you think you might need one.
If you are out at work in the day, or unwell, and the person you are caring for can’t get to the kitchen, it may be possible to have a midday meal delivered. These may be provided by a commercial organisation, or your local authority. You will probably have to pay for meals-on-wheels.
If the person you are looking after has particular dietary needs: for example, a kosher or vegetarian meal, or a very soft diet, check with the social worker that the meals-on-wheels service can provide these.
If you have to wash a lot of bed linen, the social services department may be able to help by providing a laundry service, or you may be able to get a grant for laundry charges. Ask the district nurse, GP or social worker about this.
Sometimes the social worker can arrange for someone to sit with the person who is ill, to give you a break for a few hours in the day, or an evening off. Occasionally, sitters can stay overnight. Some sitters will also help with light housework or personal care.
You may be asked to make a contribution towards the cost of this help if you can afford it.
Some areas have a 'good neighbour scheme'. The schemes can organise help from someone living locally every so often: for example, shopping, providing company, or offering transport. These schemes are usually run by the social services or local community organisations. Some are only available to people living alone. Look in the phone book or Yellow Pages under ‘Council for Voluntary Service’ or ‘Volunteer Bureau’.
Occupational therapists (OTs) are mainly concerned with practical ways of making a home safe, comfortable and easy to live in. They help people who have difficulty moving around or doing everyday tasks such as dressing, washing or cooking. Occupational therapists can suggest and arrange for minor adaptations to be made to your home|. They can also organise delivery of useful equipment that will make life easier for you, such as a wheelchair, gadgets to make bathing easier, or specially adapted cutlery.
Your social worker should be able to arrange for an occupational therapist to visit your home.
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