The Scenario:
Edward Turner is a 78-year-old man who has lived alone for many years following the death of his beloved wife. He has one daughter who is 32-years-old and lives 5 hours away. Edward is supported by good friends and neighbours close by who have taken on many responsibilities to help keep him safe, healthy, and in his own home.
Edward is fiercely independent and has learned a lot of new skills since living alone, but in the past year his health has deteriorated; his arthritis and mobility is starting to make home life difficult. Some of his hardship has been reduced by several appliances being installed in his home to help mobilisation around the house. Although this has meant that Edward has had to make compromises in his life, the supports systems have worked well for some months.
In the past month he has had three falls in his house causing him only superficial bruises; but, one fall required a trip to his GP for a sizable skin tear to his shin.
Sadly, this afternoon, Edwards neighbour arrived to find him on the patio floor with a laceration to the forehead, a swollen left wrist, and chilled to the bone. Edwards neighbour immediately called the ambulance.
On arrival at the scene, you find Edward on the patio floor covered with a blanket and his neighbour by his side. He is agitated, and with a firm voice telling his neighbour to "leave me alone...I'll wait for my daughter to come!". More neighbours come to see if they can help and talk about what has happened, while Edward appears to become more annoyed and agitated. You say hello to Edward, but he seems to ignore you. His neighbour says: "his hearing aid is not in...I'll go look for it"
Analyse the following statements and identify why they could be considered judgemental and impact Edwards's feelings.
a. "Living here is too unsafe. We need to take you to the hospital to get you fixed and then you will need to find somewhere else to live."
b. "Your impaired mobility, secondary to your arthritis, will prohibit normal living. You need immediate medical interventions and then professional assessment prior to placement."
c. "I know you're angry about all of this, but it's no-one else's fault. We would just like you to get you into hospital to be treated and have you assessed."