Windermere House Case Study: Richard

Richard was admitted to Windermere House in January 2011. Prior to his admission he had stayed in several different services but unfortunately these placements had broken down due to his illness.

Growing up, Richard was considered to be a shy reserved young man who had been a victim of bullying at school. He had a lack of confidence, was paranoid and felt that people were laughing at him. He was very worried about the opinions of others towards him; this was because he had a diagnosis of schizophrenia. During this time Richard was very dependent on the support of others and had very little motivation to be independent, a particular concern was his lack of incentive to attend to his personal hygiene and his reluctance to accept his medication. An occupational therapy report from 20011 states that he was “barely capable of independent living” and there were significant concerns about his safety.

At this time Richard never ventured out and preferred to isolate himself in his bedroom. He would also at times be verbally and physically aggressive towards other people, he is also reported to have had a very difficult relationship with his brother.

With support from the team at Windermere House Richard has developed his confidence significantly, he has a fantastic sense of humour and has formed positive relationships with both his fellow patients and the staff team. He is now more trusting, is relaxed in the company of others and has expressed no thoughts of wanting to hurt others for a number of years. Richard accepts his medication without any anxiety and will bathe regularly with very little input from the staff team.

Richard now likes to go out regularly. When he first arrived at Windermere House he would require support from staff when out in the community because he felt that other people were paying more attention to him than he liked. These days he will go out independently. He likes to go for a drink in the local café and will go shopping by himself. He also likes to go out to the local cinema. Richard and his brother have also been supported to develop their relationship and build an understanding of each other’s feelings. He now frequently takes a taxi to visit his brother independently to spend the day with him at his house. Richard’s confidence and independence have improved considerably since his admission to Windermere House.

Richard has now reached a point in his care pathway where the team feel that he has developed the skills to live more independently. We are now working together with Richard to support him in the transition to a service where he can be more autonomous and independent.