Zahra Nazari has been living at Bolindergården elderly care home since 2022 as a temporary solution. In May 2023, a caseworker at a meeting promised her own apartment with her own staff group, a commitment recorded by the family and later noted in writing. Nearly three years later, Zahra Nazari still lives at the elderly care home, and the Justice Ombudsman is investigating the support and housing Eskilstuna municipality has granted her and how the case has been handled. According to SVT Nyheter, Saviola Nazari described the authorities as having promised something she did not receive and failed to deliver.
At Bolindergården, Zahra Nazari is by far the youngest and shares common areas with much older neighbors, some with dementia. Her illness first manifested when she was 16, with her sleeping for several days in a row and needing to be woken for meals, yet healthcare has not yet established a diagnosis for her. According to SVT Nyheter, Johan Lindström described long-term living in an elderly care home as not a solution for a younger person but possibly necessary, and he noted the period Zahra Nazari has been there is unusually long, with special reasons for it that must continue to be handled.
The authorities promised her something she did not receive and have failed.
The municipality has submitted a statement reviewing what has happened, but the specific reasons for the delay in providing her own apartment remain unclear. This situation underscores broader challenges in elderly care systems, where promises often outpace implementation. The ongoing investigation by the Justice Ombudsman aims to address these discrepancies, but its current status and expected findings are not yet public.
In the UK, Marie Collins, 84, has received no state pension payments since November after being stranded in Cyprus due to health issues, with the DWP suspending payments despite medical evidence. The DWP mistakenly recorded Marie Collins as deceased, leading to the suspension of her pension payments. According to Daily Mirror - Main, Marie Collins described feeling abandoned and driven to depression after her state pension payments stopped without warning while she was recovering from surgery abroad, and she expressed frustration over having no savings to live on.
Long-term, living in an elderly care home is not a solution, but it may be necessary for a younger person.
Marie Collins is currently stuck in Cyprus after a two-week holiday back in September turned into months abroad after health issues meant she was given a no-fly order by doctors. She was admitted to hospital with a severe chest infection, later had a fall, and has since undergone physiotherapy, but still has limited use of her hand and 'no pressure' in her fingers, leaving her unable to write properly. Doctors provided letters confirming Marie Collins was not fit to fly, and both local and specialist medical evidence was sent to the DWP.
With her health deteriorating, Marie Collins asked her niece in Yorkshire to intervene on her behalf, but was told the DWP could not speak to her niece without power of attorney. She arranged the paperwork for power of attorney and sent it by recorded delivery in early January, with tracking confirming it had arrived, but her niece was later told the DWP had no record of it and still could not discuss the case. In mid-January, after intervention from the British Consulate in Cyprus, Marie Collins was told she needed to complete a new 12-page state pension form and that once received, her payments would be reinstated. The completed form was sent on January 23 and tracked as delivered six days later, but as of early March, no payments have resumed.
The period Zahra Nazari has been at the elderly care home is unusually long, with special reasons for it, and it must continue to be handled.
Marie Collins is facing court action for £875 in alleged unpaid council tax from Breckland District Council, which she disputes due to her age and disability. A Breckland District Council spokesperson stated that they reassess council tax bills when notified of changed circumstances and pursue missed payments collaboratively. This adds to her financial strain amid the pension suspension, highlighting bureaucratic inefficiencies.
UK ambulance service failures have also affected elderly patients, with a 94-year-old woman left on the floor for five hours before an ambulance reached her, as shown in a BBC docu-series about the UK ambulance service. The incident occurred while the NHS Yorkshire Ambulance Crew in Leeds were dealing with multiple emergencies, including a man threatening to jump out of a window and throw petrol on police. A 73-year-old grandmother with Alzheimer's died while paramedics filled out paperwork in a car park, after a GP and paramedics agreed not to take her to hospital. According to Daily Mail - News, Dr. Wendy Clark described it as in the patient's 'best interests' to monitor her at the care home rather than move her to hospital, citing risks of distress.
I feel abandoned and driven to depression after my state pension payments stopped without warning while I was recovering from surgery abroad.
The patient's sons claimed the GP's decision was a 'catastrophic failure'. This case reflects broader concerns about medical decision-making and emergency response times for vulnerable populations.
In Australia, a widow faced delays in receiving over £400,000 from her late husband's pensions with Prudential/M&G, with the process taking months instead of the expected 4-6 weeks. M&G upheld two complaints about poor service in the pension case, including an instance where staff said they were awaiting documentation that had already been received. The pension funds and compensation, totalling £421,310, were paid to the widow after intervention from a columnist. This highlights systemic issues in financial services affecting elderly beneficiaries.
I have not had a penny for nearly four and a half months. I’ve got no savings. What am I supposed to live on?
Swedish housing and financial struggles for the elderly include Zuzana Färber, 66, facing debts of nearly one million kronor after her housing association was plundered, forcing her to continue working instead of retiring. Solvig Karlsson, 87, nearly had her pension benefits withdrawn after being incorrectly reported as having 3.6 million kronor in income. Lisbet Persson experienced mobility issues when the only working elevator in her building broke down, hindering her ability to shop with her rollator. A pensioner in Åre must repay housing allowance for over 2.6 years after failing to report changed assets.
Infrastructure failures further impact elderly independence, with a 79-year-old woman in Ipswich left without a landline for a month due to a fault, affecting her ability to contact family and access services. An Openreach spokesperson stated that the fault was caused by water entering a cable, affecting about 21 properties, and apologized for the disruption. Such incidents underscore the vulnerability of elderly individuals to technological breakdowns.
Every time I got through to someone different, it felt like they hadn’t read any of the notes. They just kept sending me round in circles.
Legal and council tax disputes add to the burdens, as seen with Marie Collins's case in the UK. These examples illustrate a pattern of bureaucratic and systemic failures across multiple countries, affecting elderly and vulnerable individuals in housing, healthcare, finance, and infrastructure. The implications suggest a need for comprehensive reforms to address these recurring issues.
Unknowns persist, including what specific diagnosis or medical condition causes Zahra Nazari's symptoms and why it has not been established after years of illness. Additionally, the reasons for the DWP not reinstating Marie Collins's pension payments despite receiving medical evidence, power of attorney paperwork, and a completed state pension form remain unclear, as does the current status of the Justice Ombudsman's investigation into Zahra Nazari's case. The extent of similar systemic failures across the UK and Sweden and any considered reforms are also not fully known.
I could not make calls, I could not receive calls, I could not send texts. I was completely stuck.
I could not write. I had to get help to fill it in. I tried to hold the pen with two hands just to do a signature.