An "aged care crisis" or

 something even worse?

It was Middle Cat's "turn" to see the Senior Cat yesterday. Right, first that needs to be explained.  Middle Cat and I "sort of" take it in turns to visit him. There are several reasons for this but we are also flexible. If one of us cannot go for some reason then the other will go. If the local priest wants to sneak in then we stay away. (No, there is nothing religious about the visits of the latter. They mostly talk about woodwork - the Senior Cat is still encouraging D... to do this. He told D... that he (D) needed a hobby and carpentry was a good choice for a priest.)

Of course for months now the other people who would visit the Senior Cat have not been permitted to do so - all because of Covid19. We were told we would not be allowed to visit either. Middle Cat refused to accept that. Unless the residence was in "lock down" then visitors must be allowed. That might sound selfish but Middle Cat was arguing not just for us but for the elderly woman who visits her husband everyday - and has lunch with him. She was arguing for the woman whose very young husband is there post stroke. That woman has returned to work full time to support her children and still rushes in to see her husband when she gets the chance...the children have not seen their father for months.

Most of the residents don't get visitors at all so our visits perform another function. We have been doing no more than say "hello" as we pass people and occasionally exchanging a few words - but that is enough. 

Why? Because one of the older staff, a woman who is there because the work is an active career choice for her, told us, "It's good to have you in and out like this. It keeps us on our toes."

But things still happen. Middle Cat went in yesterday around lunch time. She found someone "helping" the Senior Cat eat lunch. The Senior Cat was lying down and the light was not on. (His room is rather dark.)

Now sitting the Senior Cat up is a matter of pushing a button - nothing more. Turning a light on is a matter of flicking a switch. The young staff member had done neither. The Senior Cat eats almost nothing anyway and this is not encouraging him to eat enough to keep him comfortable.

Middle Cat put in a complaint...and I think she was right to do just that. This sort of thing is what happens when the people employed to do the work are not interested in it. We all know there is a problem with getting staff. People simply are not paid enough. They are not well trained.

This is a catastrophe not a crisis. We are not caring for the generation which made our generation and those which follow it possible. The young staff member will likely be told, "Don't do that again" but it will be no more than a mild reprimand. The residence manager won't want to risk losing a staff member. They are short-staffed at the best of times. 

And there is something else. They get away with this sort of thing because the residents are largely powerless to complain about it. They are dependent. They are also of the generation which now sees themselves as a "burden". Many of them, including the Senior Cat, hate to have to ask for help - to "bother" people. The way in which they are treated also encourages them not to ask for help.

We shouldn't see the oldest among us any sort of burden at all.  We should see them as a gift.