Going Out descriptor question

Hi
I'm helping someone with their pip review. It's changed since their previous application. Specifically the Going Out descriptor. They absolutely, without question have great difficulty planning and executing any unfamiliar journey and on occasions they have tried they have got lost, panicked, felt suicidal (they feel these emotions quickly due to mental health issues). They can drive, but only do so on familiar, very short local routes. They can very occasionally attempt one long route that they have done for decades to visit their mother.

To do any unfamiliar journey requires someone else to plan it out for them and be available by phone for when they inevitably get lost and panic. They do not use public transport due to anxiety and paranoia and also severe hearing impairment, so they would not hear announcements, etc and this causes anxiety.

So I think they will score something for unfamiliar journeys? They also have cognitive impairments so they cannot read a map, they cannot process verbal directions, at least first time, it has to be repeated on a number of different occasions leading up to the journey, they will not remember directions given in the street if they are lost, etc.

But I'm puzzled about familiar journeys because does this mean a 5 min walk to the corner shop as well? They can do that, they can drive down a few streets to a small town that they know. They will not get lost in this situation, but other familiar journeys, ie not regular ones but still familiar, they often get lost and disoriented, ie the nearest town centre where they might go for a hospital appointment, then be unable to locate their car afterwards. It's all still familiar but they can become very distressed because of not being able to retrace their steps, or remember the spatial layout of the place they've parked, etc, even though the area is not unfamiliar to them.

They have anxiety and mental health issues, but I'm trying to understand the cognitive ability aspect of the journeys, particularly familiar as I'm not sure if they meet part of that descriptor or not. Thanks for any advice.

Hi Rebecca,

Driving is a tricky one I feel. As you explain the person can drive but only short familiar distances. The DWP may argue that either therefore they can plan a journey ,as to step into a car and drive it is to accept that one may encounter hazards on any journey and be prepared to alter the route at a moments notice and/ or also if the person is as impaired as claimed are they even fit enough to be driving at all...no matter the distance?

Thanks Gordon and Becky

I feel a bit responsible because I'm helping him with the review form and he has ADHD, mild brain injury, is highly distractable and cannot concentrate for very long at all, and also he has memory problems, so he says its 'in one ear and out of the other.' So having to go through it with him in bits at a time.

The review form doesn't seem to give much space. Are they really looking for a lot on the review forms? I'm just wondering how much time we should spend on this, is it as important as the original application?

Re his disabilities, they are complex. He's often ok on familiar journeys on short local routes, but he has had some bizarre episodes even then, though few and far between. He has phoned friends in distress before now because of forgetting where the car is parked, or because he's lost something in the town and once because he'd lost something and then, with help from strangers, he retraced his steps and found the item in a rather bizarre place (I'm not going to be specific on a public forum). He then was very distressed because he had a memory of putting the item there, but it was so bizarre he had no idea why he would do that. This was all on a familiar, local route. But at the same time he can do those routes a lot. This unusual behaviour seems to coincide with episodes of depression which spills into paranoia. It also coincides with leading up to a migraine, he gets a 'personality change' leading up to it which he reports he's not aware of, he just thinks something has upset him. the migraines happen around 6 or more times a year and when they happen they occur in clusters, so about 7 migraines per cluster roughly. These affect him when out on familiar routes because he will have to call a friend to get him home as he can be blinded for a time.

I think what I'm trying to say is there are issues with familiar routes. The most obvious problems though are with unfamiliar journeys, getting lost, not remembering his location, lack of spatial awareness, difficulties remembering directions others may give, inability to read a map, hearing impairment, issues with paranoia, panic attacks, etc.

He doesn't have a copy of his previous application so I suppose we should just clearly describe his difficulties, which are unchanged from before. Just make it as clear as possible? I'm just worried that in order to do that we would be writing a lot more than is suggested by the space given. Any thoughts on all this? Thanks

If it's ok can I ask another question re Moving around.

This person has Fibromyalgia and Osteoarthritis. His condition fluctuates quite considerably. There are times when he could not walk 20 metres and he will stay lying down at home. There are also plenty of times when he can do strenuous outdoor work.

You have to tick a box, do we tick it for when he's well, or when he's not well? the only problem with the latter is that when he's physically well, you wouldn't know he had a problem. (or perhaps not tick a box but put an explanation beside the boxes?)