"Home Care in Melness, Tongue, Borgie and Skerray"

The Home Care in this locality appears to be in crisis.  At the moment we are down to just two reliable Carers who are trying to cover four shifts between them.  There are supposed to be four regular Carers - two covering mornings and two covering the evenings in rotation but since last October there have only been three Carers covering the three shifts.  One of the original four Carers retired last October (2021) having already delayed her retirement by six months in order to help keep the system going and yet another has been put on unpaid leave.  

The result of this latter action has been that since the end of November 2021 and up to last  Friday there have been 26 days where there have been no carers available for either the morning shift or the evening shift.  I have Lymphedema in both legs and have to wear compression hosiery each day. As I can't put the hosiery on myself and also cannot take it off that has resulted in 26 days without the required hosiery.  The result of this is that at times I have difficulty in getting about because of the swelling.  It also seems that although there are people who are interested in working in the care system the jobs are not being advertised fully.  i.e. the advert may say that Carers are wanted in, for instance, North Sutherland but they don't say that the Carers are required in the Melness, Tongue and Skerray region.

North Sutherland covers much more of an area than most people would expect and can therefore put local people off when looking for a position in the Care system if they think that they are going to have to travel great distances to get to the persons requiring their help.  Even in this area there are people who live well away from the villages, often down a track or up a hilly track that can in bad weather only be accessed on foot.

As I write this I don't know if I will be getting a Carer today or for the next three days as the remaining two Carers have finished their stints and won't be due back on until Sunday morning.  Are we to be continually left in limbo and the Carers out on a limb.  The people who sit in their office have no idea of the distances between care users that the Carers have to cover here on the west coast and never will unless they see it for themselves.

 Something has to be done.