Our day did not start off particularly well as our two carers were quite delayed by the traffic and so were 20 minutes late- this only matters because Meg is left half undressed in the bathroom whilst I am waiting for them. They were not particularly happy with the company that employs them because various timings had been messed up and the spreadsheet with which I am supplied for the week ahead often has changes on it from one day to the next. For example, the timetabled slot for today so that Meg had a sitter whilst I go off and do my Pilates session was inaccurate and the carer in question could not extend her hours at all because she herself needed to go off to the local hospital for a blood test. I was bit concerned whether Meg would be in a good enough shape to attend our normal coffee event in Waitrose this morning and my fears were justified. As I was transferring Meg from her chair to her transit chair, she slid off which is not at all surprising as she does not have the ability to sit properly in a chair any more. So Meg finished up on the floor and there was no alternative but to call the Falls team out who, as they have to come from Kidderminster, took about 35 minutes to arrive. Of course, they were very good and have a large inflatable pillow arrangement which raises the fallen body to an approximately sitting position. Even so, it took the two personnel to get Meg sitting in her normal chair. As I am not feeling too hot today (after the COVID booster yesterday?) I have decided to forgo the Pilates session for later on today as I do not feel in the right frame of mind, either physically or psychologically, to leave Meg after she has fallen yet again. The realisation is gradually dawning upon me that the days when I used to just about get Meg into the car are probably to all extent and purposes over – which means that I am confined to the house every day just as much as Meg is. I needed to get onto the care agency to sort out some of the scheduling anomalies and get through to the manager, which was helpful. When I explained that I had asked Social Services for additional help but got no response despite a variety of messages, he volunteered to phone social services directly for me as, in his opinion, the social services departments respond more readily to the care agencies than they do to their actual clients (which is a bit of an eye-opener)
Later in the day, a care worker called around so that, in theory, I could go off and do my Pilates but in practice, I was not really up to anything like that today. So whilst the care worker sat with Meg, I went down to Waitrose to pick up our newspaper and to buy one or two things of which we may be running short. Then I returned home and set about preparing the dinner, whilst the care worker left. Then, after I had served up the dinner in the kitchen, I needed to get Meg to get out of the chair and into the transit chair. But this was beyond her and she slithered to the floor again. I had no alternative but to call the falls team for the second time today and they turned up in about 40 minutes, whilst I left Meg on the floor and ate my own dinner. I phoned the community OT team to ask if I could speak with the OT worker who has been so helpful to us in the past. So I had to explain Meg’s dilemmas and incapacities to the duty receptionist who said they would pass the details onto the Falls team for a response. A report goes from the Falls Response team (who get people off the floor using inflatable devices) to the doctor, who then in theory should make a forward reference to the community OT team but whether this ever happens is problematic. However, one of the workers who had already got Meg off the floor twice today and she said that she would contact the OT team directly to add a note of urgency. I explained that Meg was badly in need of another home visit and assessment and the response was they would put the request ‘into the system’ so nothing will happen for a day or so. I then texted the care agency to see if he had any luck persuading social services to authorise another visit but no response as yet. So I am in the situation where I have sent off please for help in three or four directions but can do nothing in the meantime until there is some kind of response. The care worker is due to call at 8.00pm to help to put Meg to bed and I am afraid that there is no alternative, however uncomfortable Meg happens to be, until they turn up in about four hours time. Tonight, I am going to Skype my University of Winchester friend so that we can swop notes and update each other.
Of course, the Trump story continues to fascinate us. Today he has fined $9,000 for violation of anti-gagging orders designed to prevent the intimidation of witnesses. But what is exercising some judicial minds in the United States, even on the far right, is Trump’s claim for presidential immunity currently before the Supreme Court and which, although they have delayed judgement for some time, may well uphold Trump’s claim for immunity at least in part. But if this doctrine is established then there is nothing to stop Jo Biden, were he to be reelected, to launch a pre-emptive strike against Trump and his entourage in a totally illegal abuse of presidential power. But if the Supreme Court allows for even some degree of presidential immunity from prosecution, then the consequences for the Republican party could be catastrophic in the years ahead. So far, as expected, the Supreme Court stuffed full of Trump nominees have been relatively well disposed towards Trump by allowing certain legal actions to be delayed – which is all part of the Trump ‘play’ But there are quite a lot of legal actions to work through the system in the weeks ahead so we will have to hold our breath to see how these work out.