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Denise - My Bluebird Care Journey

Sandra has told me that if she had a daughter, she’d like her to be like me. Sandra never had children, she never married. She’s 92 now and she’s on her own, she has nobody. I see her every day and when I go in, she’s waiting for me, she loves me. 

She’s such a great character, a real lady. I have a bond with her, and I go over and above for her. She lives just up the road from me, and I’ll take her over a chicken dinner when I’m cooking one. When she was in hospital, I went to visit her and brought her Lucozade.   

I usually put her to bed at 8pm but two nights a week I go at 10.30pm because I know she likes to stay up late and watch television. I give her a cup of tea and some fig rolls and I sit with her for half an hour before she goes to bed. 

Working for Bluebird Care doesn’t feel like a job to me, it’s not a job at all. I care for everyone, for me it’s just a normal thing to do. 

I was just 18 when I became a carer, and I’ve been working in care for almost 30 years now. I’ve worked in nursing homes, I became an inspector, I worked in an office which I hated.  

When my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer, I came back to Bluebird Care earlier this year. I’ve become a carer again which suits me. I like the care that Bluebird Care provides and the way they run things. They have compassion for their clients and their carers. I knew they would be one hundred per cent behind me when they knew my mother was sick. 

Now I work 18 hours a week and that fits in perfectly with looking after my mother. I have to get her up in the morning and I have no morning calls. I have the flexibility that I want.  

I treat every single person that I go into the way I would treat my mother, the way I would want to be treated myself. I like being hands on. 

Older people have their dignity and keeping that dignity is very important. You have to listen to them, speak to them, find out what sort of person they are. I l have a cup of tea everywhere I go.  

Yesterday I went to see Maura for the first time. It was supposed to be a half hour call, but I ended up staying there for an hour and a half. I knew half the people she knew. When I left, she came to the door with me on her walking frame. I would have stayed there all day, but I had another job to do. 

I have a great laugh with most of the people I go to. I’ve had a better time during calls that I would have done if I’d been on a night out. I’ve had a great time. 

Bluebird Care have everything right. They are efficient. They make sure the job is well done. They feel like a family to me.  

I couldn’t be happier. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, I really am. I don’t worry about anything. My bills are paid, I look after my mam, and I have my little job. What more do I want in life?