Sadly, Glenn has been moved from aged care facility to aged care facility following a stroke and the death of his parents. The stroke, his intellectual disabilities and autism have caused behavioural challenges and self-harm behaviours that have led to Glenn being evicted from multiple facilities. Being unsettled and moved around time and time again has only worsened Glenn’s anxiety and behaviours, and so the cycle has continued for many years.
Glenn’s complex mix of disabilities has led to him being deemed safer to live on his own with 24-hour support.
“After his parents died, he went into aged care. He found it very difficult to live with other people. Glenn needs one-on-one attention and they have staffing issues. They probably didn’t mean to treat him that way, but he became a problem to them,” Glenn’s support coordinator, Dawn, explained.
When they found somewhere for Glenn to live on his own, they were all anxious but knew they had to give it a fair go for Glenn’s sake. But Glenn and Dawn ran into some roadblocks when it came to setting up his apartment; after years moving from institution to institution, he had nothing to make his house a home.
“For Glenn, he really had nothing with him because he had moved from the family home into various aged care facilities, and he basically had to start from scratch,” Dawn said.
Thankfully, Dawn applied for a Youngcare Home Support Grant on Glenn’s behalf. Glenn was thrilled when he heard the news that he was receiving funds to purchase furniture, a washing machine, a dryer, linen, a microwave, and other household items. He really enjoyed the process of going shopping with his support worker and picking out the items to set up his new place, something we all take for granted, but for Glenn, it gave him a sense of independence and self-worth.
“For years he had no say in anything, no control, everything was decided for him. So, it’s been really important for him to have a choice and be asked ‘what do you want?’
“He got to choose the design of basically his whole house and what would be best for him. Prior to receiving the grant, Glenn was very stressed out; ‘am I going to have a washing machine, a dryer? Where will the carers sit?’
Glenn has adjusted to the change remarkably well and his life has improved in many ways since living independently. Now, Glenn feels safe and secure in his own home, his behaviours have improved significantly. Even his relationship with family members has improved; his brothers regularly visit, now feeling comfortable in Glenn’s home and confident with how they can support his needs.
Glenn and his support team are so grateful to Youngcare donors;
“We’re incredibly grateful that he had Youngcare’s support, because now he’s set for life really. He’s got what he needs to be independent. It took a lot of the behaviours and stress away; it’s really reduced the anxiety for Glenn. To have his own things is incredibly important.”
