Reablement

Reablement is about giving adults the opportunity and confidence to relearn and regain some of the skills they may have lost because of poor health, disability or impairment, following a spell in hospital or problems at home.


Reablement aims to:

  • Enable people to stay in their own homes
  • Keep or improve independence and safety in all areas of daily living.
  • Improve quality of life

It provides support for a short time to help you become as independent as possible. You may need support with aspects of day-to-day living such as personal care, preparing meals and shopping.

The service is free for people aged 18 and over who live in the Borough of Darlington and who are at significant risk of losing their independence.

 

Case Study

Mr A's GP rang Adult Social Care and asked if Mr A could be assessed for a carer to help Mr A with bathing.

The Occupational Therapist who works with the Reablement Team was asked to carry out an assessment of Mr A's need for bathing support, with a view to:

  • Reducing the need for a carer
  • Maximising his independence
  • Giving him a choice of bathing times
  • Reducing the need for Home Care

Instead of focusing on the care that Mr A needed to assist him to bathe, his assessment was about looking at the skills he had and what he could do for himself with the help of his wife.

The plan was to ensure that Mr A re-learnt the skills he needed in a short, intensive period of time. Both Mr A and his wife were given equipment to assist with bathing and learnt the skills necessary to ensure he had his bathing needs met independently and without the need for a carer. Therefore the focus was on Mr A's own skills and re-learning old skills that had been lost due to his illness and long hospital stays.

A traditional assessment would suggest that Mr A would have received assistance from a carer to help him bathe.

The Reablement approach ensured that Mr A lived as independent as possible without the need for intervention from a care agency.

As a result of reablement Mr A was able to have:

  • dignity (being able to bathe alone or with people he  knows)
  • independence (being able to carry out the bathing task himself)
  • choice (he can have his bath when he wants it)
  • control (can decide to decline bath if he wishes to)

 

 

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