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DLA to PIP

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  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,330 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi,

    I know it's very frustrating when you see things written that didn't happen but the DWP or the Tribunal won't be interested in any lies told in the report. Any complaints about the report should be sent to the health assessment providers, details are on their website.

    You should concentrate on where you think you should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding 2-3 examples of what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to you.

    Do bare in mind that you will always score points for using an aid if it is medically reasonable for you to do so. If assistance is needed then you will have to prove why it's not reasonable for you to use an aid safely and reliably.

    This link maybe useful and i'd advise you to have a read through as it will give you more understanding about what the descriptors mean. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-assessment-guide-for-assessment-providers/pip-assessment-guide-part-2-the-assessment-criteria

    You have 1 month from the date of the decision to request the MR. Good luck.

    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • cristobal
    cristobal Community member Posts: 984 Disability Gamechanger
    @Dinkysaurus - there was some discussion about walking on another thread.

    You should only be assessed as being able to manage any of the descriptors if you can do so 'reliably' (as @ilovecats says)

    If you are taking nearly a minute to walk such a short distance this is not  'within a reasonable time period' and therefore not 'reliable' so you should score 12 points.

    If the assessor has written what you have posted above then then it seems that they've just made simple mistake (unless they don't know the guidelines)

    As @poppy123456 says no need to say anyone's lying but for MR just point out that if they look at their own guidelines they will see that they have made a mistake...

    Good luck...
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    @poppy123456 @cristobel

    Thank you for your replies.

    Yes I wont be saying she lied Im really not that sort of person even if I disagree with what she has written. 

    As you can see in my previous posts walking at any time is unreliable the number of falls I have. My bedroom is downstairs ( was the dining room ) and walking 5 metres into the living room or vice Versa I fall, and I mean on a regular basis. Hence where my anxiety for going out comes from. Imagine your leg is just dangly and you cannot feel where it is. Not only do I have the pain from my good knee and hip I also need to try and swing the bad leg...this is where I overbalance. 

    I would like to ask.... as I said Im downstairs now the bathroom upstairs. I have a commode in my room. I use this all the time. And I really dont want to go into detail here but lets say I cannot clean and need help with toilet needs. All of which was explained. Also on occasion, I have had incontinence as I haven't got to the commode in time. I was awarded 0 for toilet needs.  Is the commode classed as an aid?  This was on my form and my GP letter that was sent in and I explained this to the nurse in the f2f. There was no mention of the commode at all in her report.

    Thank you guys...


  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    Oooo and another question...sorry,

    My MR,,,is it best to phone it or send in the post?

    Thank you again
  • April2018mom
    April2018mom Posts: 2,882 Disability Gamechanger
    I would send them it by post. That way you can be sure that they will receive it. 
  • cristobal
    cristobal Community member Posts: 984 Disability Gamechanger
    @Dinkysaurus - I think I read somewhere that going to the toilet doesn't include actually getting there so, if the commode is because you can't get upstairs I don't think that counts.

    I'll try and find it...but in the meantime I imagine that someone else will know for certain...
  • cristobal
    cristobal Community member Posts: 984 Disability Gamechanger
    @dinkysauraus - this is what the guidelines say...

    Descriptor A should be appropriate for claimants who use a commode due to limited mobility (and therefore have difficulty mobilising to the toilet) but otherwise can manage their toilet needs or incontinence.

    IIRC 'A' = 0 points...
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,330 Disability Gamechanger
    Always put the MR in writing. If the reason you have the commode is because you can't get to the bathroom because of your mobility problems then i agree with @cristobal it won't be taken into consideration.

    Lots of people think that they should have scored x amount of points or they should have scored higher than they did in certain descriptors but it's not always possible. This is the reason i posted that link above for you to have a read. I agree it's very long but well worth spending a little time reading as much as you can to give yourself a better understanding.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    Thank you once again for your help.

    I will keep you updated as we go along. I could be here quite a while on the forum. Which is no hardship as you all have been very helpful and its very much appreciated.
  • cristobal
    cristobal Community member Posts: 984 Disability Gamechanger

    Lots of people think that they should have scored x amount of points or they should have scored higher than they did in certain descriptors but it's not always possible. This is the reason i posted that link above for you to have a read. I agree it's very long but well worth spending a little time reading as much as you can to give yourself a better understanding.
    Fully agree ...
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    @ilovecats thank you for your explanation.

    I really can't go into my toilet habits here, Im sure no one really wants to know but your second paragraph is more my situation.
    I will look closely at Activity 12.

    Thank you
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,330 Disability Gamechanger
    @ilovecats thank you for your explanation.

    I really can't go into my toilet habits here, Im sure no one really wants to know but your second paragraph is more my situation.
    I will look closely at Activity 12.

    Thank you
    Then scoring 0 for toilet needs is correct.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • twonker
    twonker Posts: 617 Pioneering
    ilovecats said:
    @ilovecats thank you for your explanation.

    I really can't go into my toilet habits here, Im sure no one really wants to know but your second paragraph is more my situation.
    I will look closely at Activity 12.

    Thank you
    If you have a physical condition that causes restrictions when sitting and standing or pain when attempting to do so then this can be considered, think about how you rise from the toilet. Do you have to hold onto a sink, radiator, hand on the wall. That would indicate a need for aids.

    so would not being able to manage your hygiene effectively, e.g putting your hand ‘downstairs’ if that is restricted then again, aids can be considered. 
    So having to have a commode downstairs because getting to the toilet is almost impossible as it is upstairs = 0 points. Yet already having a downstairs AND an upstairs toilet that both have a frame fitted around them would score 2 points!

    I presume that not having a commode downstairs due to the lack of any privacy (open room kitchen/dining/lounge), and the inability to get upstairs to the only toilet and consequently would soil themselves would get how many points? The only reason I ask is that my elder brother was in this position until he died last year - he was continually soiling his clothes and was awarded 0 points for his PIP claim/review just before he died. It was said that irrespective of the room layout his walking ability he should have worn nappies which he refused to do (to proud).

    Never thought that I would want to discuss bodily functions.

     
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    @twonker

    I am so sorry for the loss of your brother. 

    Yes I have also soiled myself trying to get to the toilet hence why I have a commode. I also cannot stand and clean myself. My daughter cleans as I stand with my crutches, I cannot stand on one leg I don't have balance not to mention the deteriorating condition of my knee and hip on the good side which will no way hold my weight for that length of time. Then, of course, I cannot pull my lower clothing up either. 

    I go upstairs once a week for a bath. This involves going up the stairs on my bottom. However, as I told the assessor and my GP explained this too this now is too painful and I refuse most times it just makes me anxious and panicky. Also, this was explained. 

    When I do get a bath they assessed me 2 points I need an aid or appliance. Remember I cannot bend. So i step in with my good leg while my daughter supports the bad leg, then she lifts the bad leg over into the bath * this is where I usually give a squeal of pain. Lowering into the bath she stands behind me at the end of the bath with her arms under mine and lowers me down.  I can wash my hair and top of body but she washes my lower body as I cannot bend...this was also confirmed in the report I couldnt bend. So I dont understand why I didnt get the help with bathing below the waist. 

    The same with the dressing I can do the top half but again I can't bend ( as the assessor noted ) but expects me to dress myself below the waist. 

    My daughter has given up so much for me shes amazing. She cares for me fulltime, and my son does when she is having some time off. I cant even get them Carer's Allowance and look how much they do for me. She is 21 she has done this since being 11 when my condition deteriorated. 

    Like advised I can only go through each descriptor and give examples of what happens when I do things . 



  • April2018mom
    April2018mom Posts: 2,882 Disability Gamechanger
    That’s all you can do. That and blindly hope for the best. Hang in there. 
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    @Ilikecats

    Wouldnt I be entitled to needs help getting in or out of the bath?  There is no way on earth I can manage getting in or out n my own with appliances. I would still need help with appliances. 

    Im sorry for the questions but I want to accurate in what I will write. If I see that what she said makes sense to you all and the reason why she will have gave me her scores then obviously I wont contest that element if I see where you are coming from. 

    I will be disputing the distance and timing of walking. If not only as I can't do it repetitively, safely and in a timeframe,  Nevermind the distance and timing of it that she must have been mistaken. 

    @April2018mom

    Thank you Im hanging in there... your help and support work wonders to keep the morale going. I could easily sit, cry and give up, but I will carry on. 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,330 Disability Gamechanger
    No, not if they think you can reasonably use an aid, that's what you'll score points for. If you can't reasonably use an aid you have to prove why it's not safe for you to do so and what happened the last time you used an aid.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • twonker
    twonker Posts: 617 Pioneering
     you have to prove why it's not safe for you to do so and what happened the last time you used an aid.
    I'm not disputing what you are saying but there has to be some sort of acceptance here. How can it be possible to prove why it's not safe? What sort of evidence would swing that?
    And as for explaining what happened the last time this imaginary aid was used  is impossible. If you don't have this type of aid then what? How would the poster know what did happen if it never happened?

    To me there is about as much supposition going on here as an assessor does.
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,330 Disability Gamechanger
    edited May 2019
    I think we've covered this many times in the past ....
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • Dinkysaurus
    Dinkysaurus Community member Posts: 36 Courageous
    @poppy123456

    On the report from my doctor ( I was going to photo the paragraph but dint no how to upload )  he wrote...

    " She lives downstairs in her house. She and her husband cannot afford to move to more suitable premises. She does not have the option of having a stairlift due to the position of the stairs, "  ( we did have someone from adaptations come to look. ) 

    So I presume this would have been an aid/appliance and the only option I would have for the stairs. I already have handrails added to both sides but I'm unable to go up that way.  

    The only thing about whether its safe is I have on numerous times fallen getting in the bath over the years and before I reverted to going upstairs on my bottom I have also had my fair share of tumbles there too. 

    Its so frustrating trying to explain. I know it needs to be done for the MR and I'm happy I got my assessment report well ahead of the final decision so I have time to get my head around it all and do the most comprehensive one I can. 

Brightness

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