Looking after Mum

Melanie and Mandy with their mother Nesta

In a small town on the outskirts of Christchurch, large garage doors disguise what is actually hospital-standard accommodation for a woman who is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease.

The two daughters caring for their mother jokingly call the garage interior Harvey Norman circa 1980: they have surrounded their mother's bed with all her furniture, knickknacks, paintings and photographs.

The converted garage

Melanie Clinton moved her family across the city to live with her mother while she was mobile, but when she became unable to move around, it was Mandy's turn. Reverend Mandy Neill announced to her Papanui parish that she was resigning to care full time for her mother.

Nesta in her younger years

The sisters talk about their experience and share their love and concern for their patient with Spectrum's Deborah Nation.