AWARD WINNING HIGH-QUALITY CARE

Coronation Lodge Rest Home is a small business with a big heart and wide recognition.

Amrinder and Indu Sodhi bought the New Plymouth rest home and supported living facility in 2019, becoming the third owners since it opened in the 1980s. In 2020, it won the Business Continuity Excellence Award at the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce Business Awards. The following year, Coronation Lodge was named the Best Aged Care Small Facility in the North Island. Sitting at a table in the dining room before lunch-time, Indu says: “We could not have dreamed of winning an award without a great team of staff – the credit goes to all my hard-working staff.”

Amrinder oversees the business side of Coronation Lodge and Indu is focused on the nursing care, leading the way with strong values and philosophies.

These include: “Treating everybody as an individual person, respecting their rights of privacy and their right of refusal. We don’t force anything and don’t judge anyone. We sit with the residents and listen to them; to their concerns and what they want.”

Indu trained as a nurse in Punjab, India, and moved to New Zealand in 2009, working part-time as a caregiver in a rest-home while studying to become a registered nurse in her adopted country. While working at the Rotorua Lakes Hospital, she continued her studies. She gained her postgraduate Certificate in Health Science from Otago university in 2012 and a postgraduate Diploma in Health Science and Rehabilitation from Auckland University in 2014.

In New Plymouth, Indu worked at Taranaki Base Hospital as the clinical nurse specialist in Gerontology, looking after people aged 65+.

At Coronation Lodge, there are 22 residents in the rest home. The facility also provides supported living accommodation for elderly clients if they do not meet the criteria for rest home entry. Calling on her extensive background in working with the elderly, Indu ensures every new resident has a comprehensive assessment so a personalised care plan can be put in place to meet their needs.

“If they get sick, we update their plan.” Staff work with family members, who are kept informed about the wellbeing of their loved ones. “Our rest home is family friendly,” says the mother of three children. “It’s small, so people get to know the staff and residents very well.”

Indu says she has instilled in her staff the importance of treating all residents with respect, allowing them to be themselves. “If they want to sleep in to 10am, allow that. They can shower every day if they want that,” she says.

New residents are encouraged to personalise their rooms with familiar items that make them feel at home. “I want people to know that rest homes are not scary.”

She remembers that during Covid time, one resident who came in for respite care was extremely scared, but he quickly changed his mind. He is now a permanent resident at Coronation Lodge Rest Home. “He told his family, ‘this is the place I want to be’,” Indu says.

To ensure residents get the best care, staff are given on-site training, particularly those doing health and wellbeing studies, level 2, 3 and 4. Indu is a trained Careerforce assessor as well. “We also facilitate apprentice level 4 in health and wellbeing and diversional therapy,” Indu says.

Since winning the 2021 award, all Coronation Lodge Rest Home staff members have been provided with free sanitary needs. In the recent rest home audit, Coronation Lodge Rest Home was awarded a 4-year certification.

The meticulous attention to detail by Indu and her staff has resulted in the implementation and maintenance of healthcare standards that exceed expectations. This commitment ensures that residents not only receive exceptional care but also enjoy a safe and secure living environment.

Celebrations for residents and staff are regular happenings. This could be the mid-year Christmas they celebrated in June or Daffodil Day. Both staff and residents are given a cake, card and gift on their birthdays. Residents vote for a Staff Person of the Month and the winner receives a certificate and a gift.

“My aim is to keep running this place, provide high-quality of care to residents and keep my amazing staff.”

Contact: 06 758 5125 or corolodge@xtra.co.nz