Caring

'  ...looks like  it's  down to me  to show  you around...!  I've only  got  ten minutes  left  of my shift  then I'm  into overtime!    Management  won't  be happy  about that  so it will be a quick tour  around the place,  ground floor only... OK!  What  agency   did  you  say  you  work  for  again?' 

' Emmos...its new to the  area,  the  yellow  building    opposite  the  war memorial,  you  can't miss it'

'  ...can't  miss you  either, there's no chance of you skiving off early is there ! You look like  a  canary in that uniform...chirpy,  chirpy,  cheep,  cheep!  Cheap  like the  wages they pay me in this   place... I'm on  a  zero bloody contract !  Do you get good money?

'Well, not bad,  its  above the minimum wage,  training,  plus  mileage  and...'

'Lucky   you...the  staff in here  are all  on  different  rates  of  pay  except  Liz  whose shagging  the home  owner...preferential  treatment with fringe benefits and all  that!    He's  making  a small fortune from this this lot in  here  and...'

'Is  that  an  alarm  going  off ?'

'...Ignore that, its just someone  buzzing for help,  always on the button  some  of them,  the top floor  is the  worse, no sooner you  get one sorted  out  another  goes off again somewhere  else ...don't worry about it,  the next shift will be on  to  it...that's  of course any of them turn up!  Anyway, as I was saying,   Alfie   the home owner makes  an absolute mint from the residents, the private ones pay well over the local authority rates and   Social Services don't give a shit!  Talking of  shit... hold your nose when  we  leg it  pass  room  29...'

' 29...whose  in  there  then?

' I forget his name...some  soldier, he's  ancient ...a 100 years  old  plus and  smells  like it!   One of the  staff  mentioned   its  his  birthday  next   week.  She  said  its   a  special  occasion, a  celebration   or  anniversary... about  some   war  that ended  a hundred  years  ago! Bloody hell, I have enough  battles with management plus my other half without getting caught  up in  his war!     Anyway... he's  blind as a  bat,  deaf   and  doesn't  say much...!   Nobody visits  him, no  family or relatives that I'm aware of,  but Jen,  she's  one  of the carers,  looks  after  his  money  and  things, you know like what a solicitor or a book keeper does, a sort of best friend if you like.    Mind  you  I've not seen her around  for  a few  weeks now,  she might  be away again on another  cruise  or driving around in her new  flash  car, that's a joke she can't even drive would you believe, her son in law acts as her chauffeur, back and forwards to the bank, parks up on the double yellows, sticks a Blue badge up and...!'

' Does the manager  or  Social   Services  not   look after his  financial affairs?   You know...an  assessment  of his needs,  a care plan ...like he's a  vulnerable  adult  isn't he... all  his  physical... emotional needs...and...?'

'No need, Jen does all that... she's  made friends with a few like  him   in here ...you know the  ones that  have no family...she  helps  out  other  oldies  in a  nursing home  across the way!   The ones  with  dementia...are easy...she said, they  haven't   a  bloody  clue  about money or anything!    Like I said the manager  Liz is occupied elsewhere  meeting  her own personal care needs  24/7  with Alfie and Social Services are never ever in here...!  Anyway, I don't know  what crap their  feeding him on though  'cos  he stinks of  garlic!  Pop in  on  the  day  if you like and introduce yourself...your uniform  near  the same colour as his skin  less  the  brown scabs!   Look, I need to  be away in a minute,  so  your times  up!   By the way,  that  agency you work for...are they looking for  any more staff?.