A day in the life of a resident
Introduction
My name is ****. I am a friendly, active and happy guy and I live in ******. It is important to me that the people in my life try to understand me and help me to communicate and be as independent as possible. So please read this outline of my daily routines and activities so that you can get to know me better. The following guidelines are written in November 2006, and are not set in stone as my habits and preferences may change.
I have lived in the Anne Sullivan Centre since 1995. I am totally deaf, but I have some vision, about 40 to 60%. I also have learning difficulties, which means you have to be patient and consistent when helping me. It is important too however, that you don’t underestimate what I can do, so give me space and encouragement to do things for myself. Most weekends I go home on Friday at 2 o’clock and come back on Monday morning. I really enjoy going home to stay with my family. In all my activities I constantly use signs, symbols and natural gestures. This gives me the skills to communicate my needs and improves my quality of life by increasing my interaction with others and reducing the times when I can’t get my message across.
In the morning:
Some mornings I get up myself and ready for my shower. Other times I don’t want to get up straight away. Take your time waking me up and give me lots of prompts and clues to let me know that it's time for my shower. I bring my towel into the bathroom and use the toilet before getting into the shower and turning it on. Sometimes I turn the water temperature up too high, so watch out for this. I like having a few minutes to wash myself before I start my showering routine.
I also have a dressing routine so please get to know this so you can sign with me and do things in the right order with me. Afterwards I open the curtains, make my bed and bring my laundry downstairs to the washing machine. Then it's time for my breakfast. Again it’s important to find out what food and drinks I like and also about my dietary requirements. Encourage me to drink as much fluids as possible throughout the day. I come and go from the kitchen and when I’m finished go with me to the bathroom to do my D.L.S. routine.
My Schedule Board
After my D.L.S. routine I go into my room to do my daily schedule board so we can communicate around what I do each day. On Mondays I do my weekly schedule board to plan out my week. This is a vital part of my day so get to know all the signs and symbols for my activities and really take your time going through this with me. It helps me to understand if you use lots of natural gestures and signs to act out what each symbol represents. Encourage me to focus and interact with you while doing my schedule and you can repeat it as many times as necessary to reinforce my learning. I also have a ‘pillow schedule’, which helps me know what day it is and how long it is until I go home. Again this can be done repeatedly to help me to understand and remember.
Leaving my House
Before we leave my house make sure that you have a plan for what we are going to do, and that the activity is prepared for me. Remember to bring my shoulder bag with my symbols, house key, Risperdal, a phone and my wallet if I need it. If you are unsure about any activity that we are going to do make sure you ask the Supervisor or someone who knows me well about what normally happens. It helps me if you are clear about what is happening and communicate with me. Most of my activities have a task-analysis in my folder explaining each step. I also have a ‘policies and procedures’ folder that gives some tips for working with me so please read this too. Sometimes if I am in bad form it might be more sensible to change or defer an activity as it may only upset me. It helps if we leave straight after I do my schedule board because I am more focused. Also sometimes you need to remind me to use the toilet before we go out.
My Cash and Carry Job
I go to Musgraves Cash ‘n’ Carry on Monday mornings to help collect the supplies for the centre. I like this job because I enjoy being on my feet and doing physical work. Together with Mary I collect the blue supplies boxes from the bicycle shed and we head off on the bus. I help push one of the big trolleys into the warehouse and we walk up and down the aisles loading up the items we need. Encourage me to stay involved and busy and to help as much as possible. It really helps me if you use positive and energetic body language and give me lots of praise. When everything is collected we go to the till and then we share the work of loading it onto the bus. Help me to unpack the supplies carefully and then we go back to the centre. When we get back I unpack the bus and carry everything into the storeroom for Mary to unpack it.
Going Gardening
I go gardening in Festina Lente in Bray on Tuesdays. I enjoy gardening because I get to be outside and to do physical work. As with my other activities, explain to me what we are doing and use lots of positive and enthusiastic body language. I like to walk around the grounds and this also gives you a chance to look out for any work that I could do. I enjoy using my watering can, pushing a wheelbarrow, coactively using a rake/brush, lifting up anything that needs to be moved and loading up the wheelbarrow. If you do the job first and encourage me to join in it makes it easier for me, as I enjoy working together. Sometimes I walk back to the bus, but usually I return to the gardens and more work. I also enjoy walking in around the stables and sometimes I really like to pet the horses.
Going Shopping
I do my shopping in the Spar down beside the Lep Inn. I used to do my shopping in the bigger shopping centres but found it a little bit daunting. Maybe in the future I will try again, especially because I have really begun to enjoy being in the shops now. I walk down to the Spar on Wednesday mornings and do my personal shopping. You need to check with me before I leave the house what I need to buy and then help me get my wallet and a shopping bag. When we go into the shop follow my interest and help me to find what I am looking for. Help me to get out my money and pay for my items and don’t forget the receipt! Afterwards we go into the Lep Inn to get a drink. Encourage me to go up to the counter and to pay for the drink. I like to take my time and chill out for a few minutes before going back to the house to unpack my shopping.
Swimming
I go swimming on Friday mornings and this is one of my favourite activities. It is important that I am finished my morning routines by ten o’clock so I can prepare my swimming bag before the bus comes at half past ten. Read my task analysis for packing and unpacking my bag so that I don’t forget anything and use lots of signs to explain things to me. I bring my shorts, swimming hat, towel and shampoo. I also bring my shoulder bag, as normal on any trip out. We get into the pool at 11 o’clock and I usually swim for about 40 minutes. I swim independently but don’t allow me to get too far away from you, as I don’t always watch where I am going and may swim into someone else. Also don’t let me drink the water in the pool as it makes me sick. Afterwards I have a shower and go back to the house.
Going Home
I get collected most Fridays at 2pm. Before I go home I have my lunch and use the toilet. It is better to do my DLS routine at about ten minutes to two as my family always arrive exactly at two o’clock. Make sure I wear good clothes and change my jumper if it got dirty at lunch. I wear home a vest, t-shirt, shirt and jumper as well as my coat. I may also have a hat and scarf when it’s colder. Make sure that my yellow home bag is packed properly and includes my meds, my home log and my meds sheet. When my granny arrives I do my schedule board and use my home symbol.
My Risperdal
Occasionally I get upset and may hit myself. If this becomes continuous and aggressive I need to be given Risperdal. It is important that whenever I leave the house that you bring the Risperdal in my shoulder bag, together with chocolate yoghurt and a spoon. I get different amounts depending on how upset I am and on how quickly I get upset. The most I would get at one time would be 3mls. The Risperdal calms me down but it may take about 15 minutes to take effect. Please familiarise yourself with my tantrum guidelines so that you will know what type of tantrum I am having and how to deal with it. Afterwards give me time to relax and talk to other staff about what happened. Always fill in my tantrum report sheet to explain why I got upset and how much Risperdal was given and what happened afterwards. After I have been given Risperdal I may be very sleepy and only want to rest.
My Key-worker
It is important that my key worker speaks on my behalf to help those around me to understand me and to meet my wants and needs. My key worker has a special responsibility to look after my possessions, to be involved with my family and to explain to new staff how best to work with me. My key worker also has to arrange team meetings to discuss how my activities are going and what changes may be necessary. This involves gathering information from all staff about my activities, discussing this in my meeting and then informing the staff what has been decided. Most of the work of my key worker is informal and is done daily through talking to my team about me and how I am doing. The more people that know me and understand me the happier I will be.
