Live-in Care in Plaistow

Yes, we provide live-in care in Plaistow, and it can be arranged around a discharge from Newham University Hospital on Glen Road. A carer moves into a spare bedroom and helps with personal care, meals, medication and getting about, day to day, and sleeps in the home at night. We start with a free assessment and a written care plan, and we confirm a start date only once we have the right carer for it.

Going home from Glen Road with a carer already there

Newham's hospital is in Plaistow, so live-in care can be planned from the ward before your relative comes home. Perhaps they managed alone before admission and now cannot: they are weaker, the stairs have become a risk, or they are confused after an infection. Short-term NHS and council support may help for a few weeks, but it comes in visits, and the nights in between are where falls and frightened phone calls happen. A live-in carer is living in the house through those hours; if your relative needs regular help during the night, we plan for that separately.

What to sort out before discharge day

1. Tell the ward you are arranging live-in care. The ward staff and Newham's Integrated Discharge Hub can then plan the discharge around it. Newham's help leaving hospital page explains how referrals work.
2. Find out what equipment is coming. A hospital bed, commode or frame needs a space, and the carer needs to know where it will go before it arrives.
3. Choose the carer's room. If your relative is moving downstairs, the carer may take their old bedroom. It must be a room of the carer's own.
4. Collect the medication list. Ask the ward for the discharge letter and any changes to tablets, so the carer can follow the new regime from the first evening.
5. Plan the arrival. Someone should be at home, or a key safe fitted, when your relative and the carer arrive.

Can the NHS pay for live-in care after a hospital stay?

Sometimes. If your relative's needs are now mainly health needs, ask the ward or the GP for the checklist for NHS Continuing Healthcare. In Newham the NHS North East London integrated care board makes the decision, normally within 28 days of receiving the completed checklist. If someone's health is deteriorating quickly and they are nearing the end of life, they should be considered for the fast-track pathway, which the NHS says usually puts care in place within 48 hours. A fast-track package can include care at home, so someone can spend their last weeks in their own bed; see our palliative care page.

Otherwise, care is funded by Newham Council after its assessments, or privately. Our Newham live-in care page covers the council route and direct payments.

Estate flat or terrace: where does the carer sleep?

Plaistow mixes Victorian terraced streets with post-war council estates and low-rise blocks. In a terrace with a back bedroom free, live-in care is usually straightforward. On the estates, it depends on the size of the flat. A two-bedroom flat on one level suits a live-in carer and a wheelchair well. A one-bedroom flat does not have room for one, and a carer cannot sleep on the sofa or share a bedroom. In that case the realistic choices are visiting care in Plaistow, subject to carer availability, a period with family, or asking the council about extra care housing or a move to a bigger home.

Low-rise blocks without a lift bring their own problem: a hospital bed and a hoist have to come up the communal stairs, and so does your relative. We check the stairwell and the front door width at the assessment.

Changeover at Plaistow station

Plaistow station is on the District and Hammersmith & City lines, and our carers reach it from Lewisham in around 40 to 50 minutes. At a changeover, the outgoing carer hands over to the incoming one at the house: medication, routines and anything that has changed since discharge. If a relative drives, the Plaistow North and Plaistow South zones both run Monday to Saturday, 8am to 6.30pm, and visitors need a permit inside those hours.

A breather near Balaam Street

A live-in carer's daily break is protected, even in the early weeks after discharge, and we agree who sits with your relative while they take it. Close by there is Plaistow Park on Greengate Street, Lister Gardens on Upper Road with its flower beds, and Plaistow Library on North Street, which stays open into the evening on Thursdays. For someone with dementia, the council's day service at The Resource Centre on Chargeable Lane, in E13, can give structure to the week and a natural window for the carer's break.

For more on how the service works, see live-in care in London.

What we can help with in Plaistow

• A carer living in, with their own room
• Care for one person or a couple
• Personal care through the day
• Medication support
• Cooking, housekeeping and laundry
• Dementia support at home
• Company, outings and appointments
• Cover arranged for the carer's breaks