expert advice

Breaking The Silence

It’s not something that gets talked about very much, but incontinence is something carers of those with dementia deal with every day. Are there any resources out there that could help?

The National Ageing Research Institute (NARI) offers this advice… Incontinence is a highly distressing and stigmatising condition that affects many people living with dementia. Up to 38 per cent of people with a diagnosis of dementia experience incontinence of urine and up to 27 per cent experience faecal incontinence. The highly personal and sensitive nature of incontinence makes the task of caring for anyone with incontinence challenging, particularly if the person with dementia does not understand or appreciate the nature of the care.

With the input of people living with dementia, carers and health professionals, NARI has developed a free online course called Caregiving, Dementia and Incontinence. It aims to provide family and professional carers with the knowledge, skills and resources to cope with all aspects of managing incontinence. The five-week course covers topics such as the basics of bowel and bladder function, and using continence aids and incontinence products and protecting the skin. The course will run throughout 2023 and users can opt in at any time. Learn more here: nari.net. au/Event/caregiving-dementia-incontinence-open-online-course.

Are you one of the 2.65 million people who provide unpaid or friend? Gain the practical skills and knowledge to provide individual support in a home or community care setting. Find out more today.

To Home Or Not To Home

My 86-year-old grandmother is adamant that she wants to keep living at home – but I’m worried about her safety. What should I do?

If you’re not confident that your grandmother is still able to live on her own, try and organise household help, make scheduled visits, and see if she’ll wear a personal alarm. You can also ask an occupational therapist to do an at-home visit and safety check.

Sceptical Dad

I finally got my “old-school” father an appointment with a nephrologist but he has an issue with her being a woman. How do I convince him to look past this?

This is a tough situation and may require some patience on your part. Discuss the nephrologist’s credentials: her education, years of experience, success stories with past patients, or any other information that you think may help his level of comfort. If all else fails, ask the referring GP for help and/or organise a call instead of a visit for the first consultation.

A Bitter Pill

How dangerous is it for my dad to be taking his medication with whiskey?

Many drugs will not interact well with alcohol. Depending on how a drug is metabolised, alcohol can decrease the desired effects of a medication, increase side-effects and even make it toxic. It’s definitely time to have a conversation, or, if you don’t think your dad will listen to you, to make an appointment with his GP.

INDEPENDENT AND AT RISK?

My mother lives alone. She’s happy but how can I figure out if she’s safe?

It’s important that you look out for the warning signs. Signs that someone shouldn’t be living alone include frequent falls, leaving the stove or oven on and forgetting about it, neglecting their own hygiene and health, having trouble with daily tasks, and forgetting their medication. If your mother is doing some or all of the above, it may be time to consider other options.

HELP – WITHOUT WARNING

My brother only occasionally shows up to visit our sister. He refuses to plan ahead, and his timing is all wrong – showing up at bedtime, bath-time or when we’re out at doctors’ appointments. What can I do to try and change it?

Start by sharing your sister’s schedule. Give him options for specific dates and times and a shared calendar (like Google Calendar). This way he can see the schedule as it changes and hopefully understand that while his visits are appreciated, a little warning is needed.

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant

• 10g sea salt flakes

• 50ml extra virgin olive oil

• 2 small onions, finely chopped

• sea salt flakes, extra, and freshly ground pepper

• 1tsp finely chopped garlic

• 1 x 10cm-long rosemary stem, leaves stripped and finely chopped

• 20ml apple cider vinegar

• 550g overripe tomatoes, roughly chopped into 1cm pieces

• ½ cup cooked brown lentils

• 2 tbsp tomato sauce

• 1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

• 60ml olive oil

• 100g bocconcini, torn into pieces

• 60g parmesan (freshly grated, if possible)

• fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley, chopped, to serve

Mediterranean-style ingredients, protein-rich lentils and sharp parmesan make a complete comforting meal in one dish.

Method

Preheat a fan-forced oven to 200°C and lightly grease an 18cm x 12cm baking dish. Cut the eggplant lengthways into 1cm slices, sprinkle with salt, place on a tray and set aside. Place a medium pot on the stove, add oil, chopped onions and a pinch of sea salt flakes, and cook gently for 10 minutes (don’t let the onions colour). Add the garlic and chopped rosemary and cook for a further 3-4 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the apple cider vinegar and add the chopped tomatoes. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-25 minutes until the tomato has completely collapsed and the mixture has thickened. Add the cooked lentils, tomato sauce and basil, and check seasoning. Meanwhile, pat the excess moisture from the eggplant using a paper towel. Drizzle with olive oil and cook on a barbecue, hot (this is vital) plate or in a large pan, colouring both sides.

Take your baking dish, place a third of the tomato sauce on the base, followed by a compact layer of eggplant. Then add another third of the tomato sauce, a sprinkle of parmesan and the remaining eggplant. Finish with the remaining tomato sauce, and top with parmesan and the torn bocconcini. Bake for 35-50 minutes (the time will vary, depending on your oven) or until golden. Remove from the oven and sit for 10 minutes before drizzling with olive oil and the chopped basil or parsley. Serve.

Crusty bread or salad leaves would be a nice accompaniment, but not necessary.

Roast chook with broccoli tabbouleh and turmeric buttermilk dressing

I remember when I cooked this chicken on MasterChef, giving important details like adding verjuice during the final stages of cooking and turning it over to rest for 20 minutes. It led to so much comment on email and social media, with people stopping me on the street, telling me they’d tried the recipe and couldn’t believe how wonderful it was. So enjoy!

Prep time 45 minutes / Cook time 70 minutes / Ability Medium / Serves 6

Ingredients

Roast chicken

• 2kg Barossa or other well-brought-up chook

• 125g unsalted butter, softened

• 1/3 cup french tarragon leaves

• sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 3 tbsp verjuice*

• lemon wedges, to serve Broccoli tabbouleh

• 1 head broccoli (about 360g)

• 1/3 cup baby spinach

• 3 spring onions

• 2/3 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

• 1 cup finely chopped mint

• 1 large ripe avocado, cut into small cubes

• 1/3 cup (45g) slivered almonds, toasted

Dressing

• 1 tbsp honey (raw, if possible)

• 1 tsp ground turmeric

• finely grated zest and juice of ½ lemon

• ½ cup (125ml) buttermilk

Method

Take the chook out of the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking to bring it to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 200˚C (fan-forced).

Place the butter and tarragon in a food processor and whiz to combine but don’t process it too much or the butter will split. Add seasoning to taste.

Place the chicken in a roasting tin and carefully slide your fingers under the skin around the legs and across both breasts to separate it from the meat. Place the butter under the skin by pushing it in with your fingers.

Tuck the wings under, then rub the skin with the olive oil and season to taste. Place a piece of foil just over the breast so it won’t dry out.

Roast for 30 minutes, then reduce temperature to 180˚C (fan-forced).

Remove the foil and roast for another 30 minutes. Open the oven and pour the verjuice over the bird, then cook for another 10 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the oven and turn it over in the roasting tin to rest upside down for 20 minutes. After 5 minutes, check whether the chicken is cooked by inserting a skewer into the thickest part of the thighthere should not be any pink juices. Alternatively, the internal temperature should be 68˚C.

Leave to rest for another 15 minutes (it will stay warm).

Meanwhile, to make the broccoli tabbouleh, as close as possible to serving, use a large knife to shave the head off the broccoli to give you fine pieces. Chop the spinach and spring onions as finely as you can and place in a bowl with the broccoli. Gently stir in the remaining ingredients.

To make the dressing, whisk all the ingredients together.

Carve the chook and drizzle with all of the resting juices. Just as you’re about to serve, toss the tabbouleh with most of the buttermilk dressing.

To serve, spoon the tabbouleh onto a large serving platter and pour over the last bit of dressing. Add the chook to the platter. Serve with the lemon wedges.

* Verjuice is available from most supermarkets.