FROM THE DESK OF THE HEALTHCARE MANAGER
Dear Residents, Families, and Friends,
As we step into summer, there is a renewed sense of warmth and anticipation in the air. The promise of sunshine in the courtyards, shared lunches outdoors, and the beauty of our gardens blooming with life are all things to look forward to.
During the last few months, residents kept their spirits high with sing-along afternoons with our music man, puzzles, crafts, painting and board game sessions, knitting circles, and the comfort of warm teas and soups shared. These moments reminded us that even during the quieter, colder months, Faircape Health Bridgewater remains a home filled with warmth, laughter, and connection.
WHAT IS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY TEAM?
We have refreshed the layout of the communal area, and the added light and garden views have been warmly welcomed. Our courtyards are being redesigned with more greenery, shaded spaces, and seating arrangements.
With summer now here, we are excited to bring more activities outdoors including lunches and tea on the patio and courtyard, spring walks in the gardens, and creative activities such as flower arranging and seasonal crafts. We are also preparing for community events, including our Christmas lunch in early December, while maintaining a strong focus on health and wellness to ensure every resident feels safe, supported, and meaningfully engaged.
At the heart of our approach to care is our Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) of Doctors, Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, Nursing Teams, Carers, Physiotherapy, Dietetics, and Speech Therapy - giving residents access to a greater range of services.
OUR COMMITMENT
Our mission at Faircape Health Bridgewater is to provide excellence in care through collaboration, compassion, and professionalism.
We strive not only to meet clinical needs but to create a warm and enriching home environment where residents and families feel valued and supported.
Thank you to our residents for their trust, and to families for their ongoing support. Together, we look forward to a new season filled with connection, health, and joy.
Enjoy the read.
With warm regards, Dane Nagel and The Bridgewater Interdisciplinary Team
Dane Nagel
Healthcare Manager
hcmanagernorth@faircapehealth.co.za
A NOTE FROM OUR DOCTORS
Understanding Cognitive Health: Dementia, Delirium, and Specialist Support.
At Faircape Health Bridgewater, we pay careful attention to cognitive health and how residents think, remember, and interact with the world. Families often ask about the difference between dementia and delirium, and when a psychiatrist becomes involved.
Here’s how we approach it:
Dementia
• This is a progressive condition that develops gradually over months or years.
• It affects memory, reasoning, speech, mood, and daily independence.
• The most common form is Alzheimer’s disease, but there are others, such as Vascular or Lewy Body Dementia.
• While dementia cannot be reversed, early recognition and treatment can slow progression and greatly improve quality of life.
At Faircape, we focus on structure, routine, stimulation, and dignity, while working alongside families to create a safe and familiar environment.
Delirium
• This is the sudden confusion that develops over hours or days, often triggered by a medical cause.
• Patients may appear drowsy, disoriented, agitated, or withdrawn.
• Causes include infections, dehydration, medication side effects, or sudden illness.
• Unlike dementia, delirium can often be fully reversed if the cause is identified and treated quickly.
At Faircape, we investigate possible causes, review medications, ensure hydration and nutrition, and provide reassurance in a calm environment.
The Role of Psychiatry
Sometimes, further clarity is needed, especially when symptoms overlap, or when behaviour changes impact safety and well-being. This is where psychiatry becomes invaluable.
Diagnosis: A psychiatrist conducts a thorough assessment to distinguish between dementia, delirium, depression, or other mental health conditions.
Treatment Planning: Based on the diagnosis, they then develop a tailored management plan. This may include specialised medication, therapy, or non-drug interventions.
Advanced Support: Psychiatrists guide both staff and families in managing mood, behaviour, and cognitive symptoms, ensuring that care is consistent and compassionate.
Ongoing Monitoring: They work alongside our doctors and nurses to adjust treatment as the resident’s needs change.
Remember, whether gradual dementia or sudden delirium, cognitive changes can be unsettling for residents and their families. The most important thing to note is that not all confusion means permanent decline. With thorough medical evaluation and psychiatric support, we can provide the right diagnosis and set up advanced treatment plans.
Written By Dr. Erin Warren Hansen, Dr. Heather Dicks and Dr. Nicole Jacka
MEET YOUR OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY TEAM
The Role of Occupational Therapy in Healthcare
Occupational therapy (OT) is a crucial part of helping our residents live fulfilling lives. While the term may sound technical, at its heart OT is about supporting independence and dignity and improving quality of life.
For many elderly residents, the ability to perform even small daily tasks like buttoning a shirt, making a cup of tea, or safely moving around a room, can greatly improve their confidence and quality of life.
Occupational therapists in long- term care:
• Provides stimulating, age-appropriate and meaningful activities.
• Ensures sense of achievement, satisfaction and purpose in activity performance.
• Increases independence in daily activities like eating, washing, dressing and grooming.
• Uses assistive technology and strategies to increase, maintain or improve functional abilities.
• Improves and maintains physical abilities, strength and movement in a safe environment.
• Provides various mediums of music stimulation as music.
• Provides opportunities to be creative and for spiritual and emotional expression.
• Uses a person-centred approach through.
• Provides family and caregiver education and support.
• Modifies the environment to improve safe participation and independence.
• Boosts thinking skills and memory.
• Uses reminiscence to stimulate long term memory recall.
• Integrates Animal Assisted Therapy to facilitate healing, and companionship.
• Creates opportunities for building and maintaining meaningful relationships and facilitates social interaction.
• Facilitates community integration with outings.
In a nutshell, OT in long-term care is all about helping residents stay as independent, safe, and engaged as possible. It focuses on supporting everyday activities while also promoting mental well-being and participation in meaningful hobbies. As well as physical rehabilitation, OT is about dignity, confidence, and quality of life for older adults.
CELEBRATING WOMEN’S DAY
In honour of Women’s Day, we hosted a morning tea at our Healthcare Centre, bringing residents together to celebrate the wonderful women in our facility. We had an information session about the history of Women’s Day and some residents even shared names of remarkable women like Mother Theresa, Florence Nightingale and more. It was a morning well spent, enjoying each other’s company and celebrating women.
THE DAILY JOYS AT BRIDGEWATER
At Bridgwater, we work hard to create plenty of opportunities for participation and interaction. Whether it’s through group activities, meaningful one-on-one moments, or simply sharing laughter over a cup of tea, we believe staying engaged helps our residents feel connected, valued, and truly at home.
Simple everyday activities can make a big difference in overall health and well-being. They encourage movement, which strengthens muscles and improves balance, keeps the mind stimulated, reduces feelings of boredom or isolation, and provides a sense of purpose, which boosts mood and confidence.
Some activities our residents enjoy include gentle exercises, gardening, arts and crafts, baking, board games, bingo and outings.
Date: Wednesday, 3 December 2025
Time: 12:00
Guests: 2
Christmas is just around the corner, and we are delighted to invite families to our Christmas function. Join our residents for an afternoon of joy, music, and holiday cheer, as we celebrate the festive season together. Please save the date and come and join us. We look forward to sharing this special time with you and your loved ones. More information will follow.
ALL THINGS NURSING
Let’s Talk About Bowel Health
It may not be the easiest topic to bring up, but bowel health is one of the most important parts of staying well, especially as we grow older. A healthy bowel means more comfort, better appetite, and improved energy.
Our nursing team keeps a daily record of bowel movements for every resident. This is because little changes can tell us a lot. If someone goes three days without a movement, or if there are sudden changes, we can step in quickly before it becomes uncomfortable or turns into something more serious.
Things that can help improve bowel movements:
• Drink enough water throughout the day
• Eating fibre-rich meals such as fruit, vegetables, oats, and brown bread.
• Gentle activity or walking
• Monitor bowel routines
Always let us know if you’re feeling bloated, sore, or off your normal routine.
Why Do We Use Blister Packs?
You may have noticed that most residents now receive their medication in blister packs. These are the little sealed packs with tablets arranged by date and time.
Blister packs are wonderful because they:
• Keep tablets neat, safe, and clearly labelled
• Reduce the chance of mistakes
• Help nurses check easily if a dose has been given or not.
• Help save time
• Give families peace of mind that medicines are being handled properly.
For everyone’s safety and comfort, we encourage all residents to have their medicines supplied in Blister Packs.
Caring Together
Nursing is about heart as much as it is about care. Every day we try to:
• Support independence.
• Protect dignity, by treating each resident with kindness and respect.
• Keep families in the loop.
• Encourage social connection, because laughter and friendship are powerful medicine too.
• Look out for small changes in mood, appetite, or behaviour.
Together, with staff, residents, families, and friends, we can create a place where health, safety, and compassion comes first.
A Note From the Nursing Team
To our residents, thank you for trusting us to care for you. To families and friends, thank you for walking this journey alongside us.
Our goal is to keep every resident safe, comfortable, and supported. By keeping an eye on the little things, like bowel health and safe medication practices, we make sure the big things, like dignity and quality of life, remain at the centre.
With warm regards, Your Nursing Team
Beronique, Judith, Lungelwa, Rehema, Julene and Caroline
NEWS FROM OUR SOCIAL WORKERS
Growing, Learning, and Supporting: The Heart of Social Work at Faircape
Our social work department has been hard at work upskilling, diving into new knowledge and honing their skills in some of the most sensitive and important areas of care.
Here’s a sneak peek at what we’ve been up to:
• All our social workers completed a short course in palliative care presented by the Association of Palliative Care Centres (APCC).
• Liesl de Kock added another feather to her cap by completing Oncology Training for Social Workers with the inspiring Linda Greeff.
• Angelique Oosthuizen, Rebekah Delsouiller, Sherae Swart, and Juanee Pretorius bravely tackled the difficult topic of suicide assessment and intervention in a workshop led by Belinda from Wisemind.
• We also got our thinking caps on during capacity assessment training with Suzaan Jenkinson, an experienced UK-trained Best Interest Assessor.
• On the self-study front, we explored the world of art therapies to support healthy aging and brushed up on how to recognise and respond to anxiety symptoms in older adults.
While we love our training sessions and workshops, our greatest teachers are, and always will be, our residents. Many of the people we work with are two generations older than us, and while we bring the theory, they bring the wisdom, humour, resilience, and life lessons that no course can teach.
By Juanee Pretorius, Group Social Work Manager at Faircape Health
STAFF WELLNESS AT BRIDGEWATER
At Faircape, we believe that when our staff thrive, our residents thrive too. That’s why our HR department kicked off the year with a dedicated staff wellness programme across all six facilities.
The initiative was designed to boost engagement, encourage holistic well-being, and create opportunities for staff to connect meaningfully with one another, all while building a vibrant, inclusive, and healthy work environment.
A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO WELLNESS
Wellness at Faircape goes beyond physical health. Our programme is rooted in the six dimensions of wellness which are physical, emotional, social, occupational, intellectual, and environmental. Through supportive policies, thoughtful initiatives, and a culture of care, we aim to equip employees with the tools they need to flourish personally and professionally. In turn, this contributes to stronger teams and improved outcomes for the organisation as a whole.
Wellness in Action
With the support of our Wellness Committee, employees take part in weekly challenges and activities designed to build resilience and strengthen overall well-being. Between July and September, staff took part in calming and restorative activities such as mindful meditation, Mandala colouring, a gentle full-body stretch routine, and peaceful, mindful walks through the village.
Looking Ahead
The long-term vision of the staff wellness programme is to provide employees with the resources and support they need to manage all aspects of their health including physical, emotional, and even financial aspects. By fostering healthy habits and encouraging balance, Faircape aims to help staff reduce stress, prevent burnout, and build resilience for the future. At its heart, our wellness initiative is about our people, encouraging them to care for one another and creating an environment where everyone can thrive.
HAVE A LOVED ONE WITH DEMENTIA?
The purpose of the Dementia Support Group is to create a safe space where spouses and family of persons living with dementia (PLWD) can share their experiences in a supportive, non-judgemental and caring environment. The group is facilitated by Occupational Therapist Marijke Scrooby and Social Worker, Liesl de Kock.