Safeguarding: Case study

Hello Doctor. Mrs. Ameen doesn’t seem to be doing very well. She seems very confused. She keeps talking about things that make no sense. She still has yesterday’s clothes on, and I don’t think she’s eaten anything this morning. Hi. Just to start with my name is Amira. I’m actually one of the prescribing pharmacists on call today. Can I confirm your full name for our record, and whether you’re her regular carer, if that’s OK. Yeah, sure of course. My name is Aisha and I’m her usual carer for the afternoon visit. OK. And do you know who sees her for the rest of the day? Her son usually comes to see her in the morning.

He sets her up and makes sure she’s ready for our visit in the afternoon, as he works as a driver. OK. And do you know if he’s raised any concerns at all with his mum’s care? He’s usually pretty good, but lately I’ve noticed that he’s not turned up for a few days, and he hasn’t done the food shopping for her. Right, OK. And do you have any particular concerns about Mrs. Ameen today? I know Mrs. Ameen gives money to him every week from her pension to take her shopping. And she is telling me she hasn’t been out for two weeks now.

Right, OK. Could you let me know if you’ve checked her temperature at all? Yes, I did. It’s 39 degrees. OK. And do you know if she’s been able to pass any urine today? I’m not sure, really. Oh, she’s just shouting. One moment.

Uh, she tells me she hasn’t been able to go to the toilet this morning. OK, and is that to pass urine? Yes, that’s to pass urine. OK. And do you know if she’s had anything to drink at all? One moment.

She can’t seem to remember. The water bottle near her table’s only half full. OK. Sure. It might be a bit tricky, but are you able to kind of describe how she’s breathing, or what she looks like at the moment while she’s breathing? I’m not sure. If I had to describe it, I would say that it’s shallow, and now looking at her it looks like her skin is pale. Right. OK. Can you just confirm for me? She was recently prescribed some antibiotics. Do you know if she’s completed the course? Yes, her tablets are all finished, as I checked this morning when I came. Good, OK.

So the next steps in terms of the plan is it’s going to be based on what you’ve told me.