Reference no: EM133994553

Question

Fay, 74, lives alone at home. As a Banksia Care support worker, you visit twice a week to provide in-home care to Fay. Her daughter Marjorie also visits three times a week but can't come more often because she is a shift worker. Two weeks ago, Fay had a fall while watering the many pot plants in her home. She hit her head and got a large bruise. Luckily, she didn't fracture any bones. Nobody realised she had fallen until her daughter arrived to visit her the next morning. Since the fall, Fay has become very anxious. Fay usually lives a full life, gardening and volunteering for environmental groups. But now Fay has taken to sitting in the house, not going out. This has made her a bit depressed. When she walks, her style of walking has completely changed. Fay takes tiny sliding steps, not allowing her feet to leave the ground. Fay doesn't like to speak about needing help because she thinks she will be put into care against her wishes. She really doesn't want to move into residential care, even though her life partner Lola has already gone into residential care at Banksia Care Residential Aged Care Facility. Fay believes that Aged Care facilities are the 'waiting room for death'. Fay is on medication for hypothyroidism (Levothyroxine) which gives her insomnia. For the insomnia, she takes Valium, a sedative which makes her spaced out. Her hypothyroidism causes peripheral neuropathy (tingling and numbness in the hands and feet). She also has Osteopenia, which is common in women in their senior years. Osteopenia reduces Fay's bone density, making it more likely that she will fracture her bones if she falls. Levothyroxine also has the side effect of reducing bone density, increasing Fay's risk of fractures if she falls. Today, your supervisor Joyce Kiehne, has asked you to chat with the family to see if there are any changes that need to be made to keep Fay at Home Part 3: Observations of client You must include the following information in this section of your report:

your observations on the client's mobility

any indicators of fall risk from observing the client.