Unpaid Carers - Navigating Fragmented Health & Social Care Systems

How do you navigate a chaotic and broken system? In this clip, Karen describes the reality of trying to navigate a fragmented system while caring for her mum. Answering emails at 1 am is not unusual for her. She is simply trying to get answers and effective communication between departments and organisations. Instead, she is often left trying to piece together what is happening herself, all while managing her own health. It raises some important questions. Why does navigating the system become another caring task in itself? Why is communication so fragmented? And why is the carer so often left to pick up the pieces? As Karen asks: “How do I go and have an operation and do this sort of thing?” Through my work, I’m trying to document more of these everyday realities of unpaid care, particularly the experiences that can easily go unseen or unheard. If you are an unpaid carer and would be willing to speak to me, or perhaps document parts of your own experience through diaries, video, photographs or simply conversation, I would really like to hear from you. You can message me directly on here or email me at [email redacted]. “How do I go and have an operation and do this sort of thing?” This is another part of Karen’s video diary documenting the realities of unpaid care. #UnpaidCarers #Carers #Caregiving #SocialCare #VisualJournalism #LivedExperience