Adapting Pauline’s Home after Sight Loss

Theresa Davies is a Managing Better Caseworker for Care & Repair. She is based in the Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly area and supports people like Pauline. Here, Theresa talks us through the journey of helping to adapt Pauline’s home.

“Pauline has Severe Myopic Degeneration, Cataracts and Osteoarthritis, all of which make living at home difficult if it hasn’t been properly adapted. Pauline was referred to Care & Repair after she had fallen down the rear steps, as there were no rails fitted there.

Handrails

“On my first visit, it was just for a friendly chat to get to know each other a bit better. We talked about what difficulties she was having and what she thought would be helpful to her. Pauline is a very outgoing, friendly and capable person and I think she was a bit reluctant at first to accept help as she felt she was able to sort things out herself. I completed a Healthy Homes Check with Pauline and we agreed to install rails to the stairs, rails to the external steps where she had fallen, together with a grab rail and step to the rear door.

Lighting

“Once this work had been completed, I visited Pauline again and we discussed how some additional lighting in the kitchen and bathroom could help her. She loved cooking for her family but was finding it difficult due to the poor lighting in her kitchen. She also told me she was having problems with the lighting in the bathroom. Pauline has sensitivity to glare, so we had to factor this in also.

“Under cupboard lighting was installed in the kitchen, which makes preparing meals easier and safer. Also, more suitable non-glare lighting was added in the bathroom so she can now manage much better.

Alexa

“Pauline was amazed when I told her about what an Alexa could do and was very excited when I visited to fit it!  We set it up together to play her favourite radio station and also set up the phone contacts so she could phone her family and friends just by using her voice! She had so many difficulties using her mobile phone trying to find numbers and sometimes ringing the wrong person, so this has been very useful for her.

“I think it really hit home to me when I met Pauline that sight loss can affect anyone at any time. Pauline and I are of similar ages, we have partners, children and grandchildren who we love, and we enjoy music, cooking, socialising and our homes.  That’s why we get on so well together. We respect each other’s point of view and try to work on things together.

“The Managing Better Service has always been person-centred, so we try our best to find out what our clients want and also try to look at the bigger picture of what is really important to them.”

Theresa Davies
Managing Better Caseworker

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