Looking after yourself at home
There is a wide range of help that you can access to support you in your home. This includes living aids and equipment, domiciliary care support, assistive technology, as well as services such as delivered frozen meals.
Reablement service
After you've had an accident or a bad illness or been in hospital, or because of a long-term disability or health condition, it can be harder for you to manage in your own home.
Find out more about reablement services
Health services advice
Take some time to find out more about the variety of healthcare services that are available to you and what they can offer. Find out more about NHS services..
Help from the pharmacy
Pharmacists and chemists play a key role in providing quality healthcare to patients. Pharmacists use their clinical expertise together with their practical knowledge to ensure the safe supply and use of medicines by patients and members of the public. They offer advice on common problems such as coughs, colds, aches and pains, as well as healthy eating and stopping smoking. They can also help you decide whether you need to see a doctor..
You can talk to your pharmacist in confidence, even about the most personal symptoms and you don't need to make an appointment. It is possible to walk into any community pharmacy and ask to speak with the pharmacist. They may be able to spend some time with you. Most pharmacies now have a private consultation area where patients can discuss issues with pharmacy staff without being overheard by other members of the public. Pharmacists dispense your prescriptions and other medicines, offer testing and screening for common conditions and can advise on minor ailments.
Managing your medicines
Many of us take medication to manage our health conditions. As we get older we are more likely to need a range of pills, potions and lotions to help us stay well and to maintain our independence. It is vitally important (and in some cases lifesaving) that we know what medicines we are taking and what they are for.
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Help with personal care
If you are having difficulty with daily living tasks such as washing, dressing, using the toilet or taking medication you may just need to change the way you carry out that activity or use a piece of equipment to help you rather than asking someone to do it for you. Keeping mobile and active is a great way of keeping your independence.
Have a look at the Disabled Living Centres information about equipment which can help you. They also have a self-assessment tool called Ask SARA which can help identify equipment to help you at home.
Alternatively you may want to contact Age UK Bromley which provides a single point of entry to joined-up, quality preventative services, activities and support that promote opportunities, independence and choice to older people. These include general information, advice and advocacy, as well as shopping services, hospital aftercare, and support finding reputable tradesmen and care workers.
For people who are unable to organise their own support, due to infirmity, lacking capacity, having no one to support them or who have low income, it may be more appropriate for them to contact our adult social services to see whether they are entitled to some help.