Caring UK Weekly - ISSUE 40 by Script Media

Issue 47 10.03.21

FOR ALL YOUR INTERIOR NEEDS For further details contact Sarah Thompson: sarah@sommer-rose.com 07495 471038 • www.sommer-rose.com

The weekly online newsletter for the care sector

Group’s staff thanked on anniversary A NORTH Yorkshire care group has made a special video to thank its staff for the amazing way they have coped with Covid-19 on the first anniversary of the pandemic. Saint Cecilia’s Care Group asked celebrated social care advocate and dementia campaigner Big Ian Donaghy to create a video to provide a thank you to each of its 160 staff across its four homes and day care centre in the Scarborough area. The five-minute video features a montage of photos of care going on across all five of Saint Cecilia’s centres – its nursing home, two care homes and day care centre in Scarborough and care home in Pickering. Managing director Mike Padgham pays his tribute to staff then it is left to Big Ian to give a heart-felt thanks to the teams. In the video Ian said: “You never knew if you were going to be safe, but you put the lives of the people you care for before your own. When people were afraid you listened…when nobody had any answers you tried to explain putting the safety of the people you cared for before your own. “Thank you doesn’t come

close. People will remember how you’ve behaved in this tough time…people won’t forget. Kindness is never wasted.” Saint Cecilia’s group director Laura Clegg added: “The way our staff have responded to the stressful, daily challenges of Covid-19 has been nothing short of amazing and we wanted to recognize that in a special and unique way. “This has been a dreadful year but as we mark a dark 12 months, we hope that there are better times ahead. In thanking our staff, we join with them in hoping that the next 12 months will bring an end to Covid-19 and the celebration of a return to normality. This is a thank you to our staff, but it goes out to all social care staff up and down the country who have responded so magnificently during the past year.” Each member of staff has also been given a signed copy of Ian’s new book “A Pocketful of Kindness” which he describes as “…a pocket-sized collection of stories and pearls of wisdom to remind you of the true power of being thoughtful, compassionate and empathetic to others… to show that acts of kindness will be remembered for ever.”

Association welcomes list addition

Two team members at Bluebird Care Leeds North have trained as volunteer vaccinators to help administer Covid-19 vaccines in the local community. Director Sheree Jenman and care manager Sophie Lowndes wanted to ensure as many local people as possible received the vaccine. They had seen first-hand the effects that the pandemic has had on the community, including the loneliness and isolation of some of the most vulnerable people. They hope that in training as vaccinators they can step up to help those in need. Sheree said: “It is wonderful to see how relieved Bluebird Care Leeds North customers have been to receive their vaccines. We decided we wanted go the extra mile to help our local community, so two of us decided to train as vaccinators.”

NATIONAL Care Association has welcomed the Home Office announcement to add senior social care staff to the shortage occupation list. Executive chairman Nadra Ahmed OBE said: “NCA has campaigned tirelessly over the past three years to ensure that migrant recruitment into social care remained an option to the sector as Brexit impacted. “Our preference will always be to recruit from a domestic workforce, as it remains the most effective and sustainable route. “However, as vacancy rates show no sign of improving and the demographic indicate a clear need for more staff, it was imperative that the HO listened to our concerns and the advice of their own experts who form the Migration Advisory Committee. “We hope that the visa routes are accessible for our sector and there are no hidden barriers to what will be seen as a welcome step from the Home Secretary by social care providers.” Regrettably the domestic workforce who could undertake caring responsibilities in our sector have not stepped up to fill the vacancies. Additionally, it has become clear that there is sheer exhaustion and fatigue amongst those who have worked tirelessly over the past year and we now face the very real risk of exits from the sector by the workforce, including senior staff.

CARINGWEEKLY

Operator receives top accreditation Front of house manager Dara Scott puts together the breakfast grab bags for her fellow key workers.

Staff launch breakfast bar for key workers STAFF at Wetherby care home Windsor Court have launched a healthy breakfast bar that is free of charge to visiting NHS staff and nursing teams. Initially, the team were inspired to create the breakfast bar after serving a takeaway breakfast to the GP and nurses from Westgate Medical Surgery as a thank you for administering everybody’s Covid-19 vaccinations. The overwhelming gratitude from the vaccination team was apparent and sparked a unique breakfast takeaway initiative to support other key workers in the area. Home manager Paula Mountjoy

said: “I am so proud of my team, the way that they continue to prioritise the needs of others is truly inspiring. “I have received so much positive feedback about our breakfast bar, and I am just pleased to know that the reason a key worker is smiling on a morning is because of the Windsor Court team.” The breakfast bar has something for everyone, with healthy snack options such as fruits, yogurts, cheese strings, waffles, pancakes, muffins, cereal bars, juices and hot drinks. Key workers also have the option to receive hot breakfast sandwiches from the kitchen if they call ahead.

LUXURY operator Oakland Care has been recognised as the only social care provider in the 2021 Top Employers UK list. The South East of England-based group’s accreditation by the Top Employers Institute recognises its dedication to realise a better world of work through its HR policies and people practices. The accreditation comes as Oakland Care prepares to open Elsyng House in Enfield, London. This care home, which is set to open in February, has already filled all of the vacant roles for its new staff team. Chief executive officer Joanne Balmer said: “Over the last 12 months Oakland Care has gone from strength to strength and achieved an improvement in employee engagement along with a 50 per cent reduction in staff turnover. “To have now received the prestigious accreditation as a 2021 Top Employer is a testament to the hard work of our People team, who have made establishing Oakland Care an employer of choice a top priority. “Looking ahead, Oakland Care will continue striving to be an empowering environment where all of our team members can develop purposeful careers.” The Top Employers Institute programme certifies organisations based on the participation and results

Joanne Balmer of their HR Best Practices Survey. This in-depth survey covers six HR domains consisting of 20 topics such as People Strategy, Work Environment, Talent Acquisition, Learning, Well-being and Diversity and Inclusion and more. Oakland Care now joins more than 1,600 Top Employers in 120 countries across five continents which the Institute has certified.

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Sector responds to Chancellor’s Budget SOCIAL care leaders have been responding to Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Budget. Helen Wildbore, director of the Relatives & Residents Association, said the sector had been completely overlooked. She added: “The Budget is an insult to older people needing care, and their families. Our helpline hears every day from people who are relying on these vital services who already feel neglected and left behind by the Government. “The sector was already on its knees before the pandemic hit and now it is at crisis point. Following a year of unremitting challenges, with care services stretched to breaking point and staff burnt out, support from the Chancellor was desperately and urgently needed. Older people and their families deserve better.” Mike Padgham, chair of the Independent Care Group, agreed, saying the Chancellor had missed a ‘golden opportunity’ to begin the reform of social care. “This was a pivotal moment,” he added. “With social care in crisis and still reeling from the devastating impact of Covid-19, the Budget marked an opportunity to begin its recovery. “Support for those in difficulty, through the continuation of the Universal Credit top-up, is welcome, as is the extra support for business and investment in the economy. “But whilst billions were promised for this, that and the other, once again

Martin Green

social care and the vulnerable people who rely upon it have been betrayed. We have been left short-changed once again. “Mr Sunak talked of challenge and change, but he did not tackle the challenges facing social care and he did not set out any changes.” The ICG called on the Chancellor to begin by getting more funds to local authorities to help them fund social care. It also wanted to see social care zero-rated for VAT, to help hard-pressed care providers, who are struggling for financial survival during the pandemic. “We were looking for an indication that this Government and this Chancellor are serious about the long-term reform of social care, but we have been left wanting yet again,” Mike added. Care England chief executive

Vic Rayner

Professor Martin Green OBE also expressed his disappointment that adult social care did not receive due recognition in the Chancellor’s Budget today. “While there are some really welcome policies in the Budget which may in time have tangible impacts upon employment and investment, we are disappointed that social care, the real front line, hasn’t received the support that it so needs so badly,” he said. “This Budget still resembled an emergency one rather than one that provided any long term assurance for the sector. “A 10-year plan akin to that of the NHS backed by £7billion injection into the adult social care would have been a great help to the sector, a sector which is a big part of the national infrastructure.

“Care England will continue to put forward the sector’s case and remind the Prime Minister of his commitment to reforming the sector.” His comments were echoed by those of Vic Rayner, chief executive of the National Care Forum. She added: “There is nothing in this Budget for social care. Nothing that acknowledges the massive financial challenges affecting social care provision. “No recognition of the importance of investing in services that operate at a local level, employ local people and support the most vulnerable members of communities. “Not even an acknowledgement of the incredible dedication and commitment of the social care workforce. “The chancellor and his team must quickly address this. All ring fenced emergency funding for Covid-19 comes to a grinding halt on March 31. “Yet none of the costs associated with providing care in a Covid-19 world disappear. Urgent action is required to address these short term financial holes in the budget and the government must immediately outline the detailed timescale for the full scale reform of social care. “Meanwhile, social care will take a deep breath once again and look hard at all the announcements around developing the workforce and investing in technology, to see how they can be fully embraced by those receiving care and the workforce that supports them.”

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From bedrooms, bathrooms, wards, treatment and sluice rooms to kitchens, lounges and corridors, we can supply a solution to most cleaning needs. In care and nursing homes the Duplex is particularly effective on carpets where soiling and odours may be a problem! We also supply a wide range of steam cleaning equipment to address multi surface cleaning and sanitising issues. These machines tackle many cleaning tasks without the need to use chemicals making for a healthier, greener environment. To demonstrate the efficacy of our products we have commissioned independent tests by the Hospital Infection Research Laboratory in Birmingham. We have certified data that proves our machines kill the bacterium most common in the environment including Clostridium Difficile. As a national company we are able to offer a comprehensive range of cleaning equipment throughout the country backed up by on-site Covid-secure demonstrations and certificated installation and training sessions plus a friendly, efficient and knowledgeable after sales service. We also offer a variety of cost effective servicing solutions to suit customers’ requirements with engineer call outs to site and planned maintenance agreements to help keep your machine in perfect working order. We would welcome the opportunity to present our range to you and show you just how effective Duplex machines are at solving the cleaning issues most commonly encountered in the healthcare and nursing home environments. Contact us on 01227 771276 or sales@duplex-cleaning.com to book your demonstration.

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Home enables couple to wed AN 85-year-old care home resident married his 91-year-old sweetheart of 26 years after a senior registrar was given special powers to enable the nuptials to go ahead. Peter Smirles has been a resident at The Cedars care home in Purton, near Swindon for just over a year and had planned to marry Jean Robson sooner, but the pandemic saw repeated postponements. Unfortunately Peter’s health began to deteriorate, and just after Christmas his doctor advised that the wedding should be held as soon as possible. Amy Thorne, manager of The Cedars, which is run by The Orders of St John Care Trust, contacted Wiltshire’s superintendent registrar Sarah Bradley, who secured a special license to enable the wedding to take place within the home. Colleagues at the care home then worked with Jean and her daughters Alison Buckland and Susan Wyths to ensure a ceremony to remember and Covid-safe wedding took place. Alison added: “It has been hard on my mum and Peter, but I can’t thank Amy and Sarah enough for making this happen. It means so much to my mum and to the whole family.” The marriage was witnessed by Alison and Susan, and Peter’s daughter and granddaughter joined on Skype from their home in Norway. Jean said: “It was lovely that so many people put in so much effort to make sure this could happen. “We have been planning this for so long but it seemed it might never

Peter Smirles and his new wife Jean. happen. “Peter actually first proposed to me about 25 years ago but I said ‘why rush’ and then it never seemed to happen. Amy and her team have been so good to make this happen, and The Cedars looked lovely.” Peter added: “What can I say but ‘I love her’.” Both Peter and Jean have lived in Purton for a long time and are well known through Jean’s job as a teacher and Peter’s as a dental surgeon. Amy added: “I only started as manager here in January and this was about the first thing I was asked to do,

Advertiser’s announcement

How safe are your ratings? WHEN a less-than-brilliant junior government minister blathers on about care homes allowing more visitors in the middle of the third wave of Covid19, you reassure yourself that you are already following government guidance, and that you give high priority to preventing or at least minimising any outbreak in your home. When the CQC engages in a hissy fit at providers for falling short on allowing visits, arguably it’s a different matter. The Government announced on February 25 that they propose to issue new guidance to care homes, permitting visits by a single named individual from March 8, to hold hands but not to have more close contact, and subject to prior testing. The same March 8 that sees schools re-open, at a stroke bringing ten million people back into crowded buildings with no social distancing, predicted to increase R from 1.1 to 1.5. Especially hazardous for the multigenerational (and often vaccine-sceptic) households of the BAME community. And for their loved ones in care homes. And for all the other residents of said homes. When you try to match the notice of this cautious (sic) change with the subsequent missive on the CQC website you would think that the guidance was in place in March of last year not this one. Warnings that “blanket bans” are unacceptable, follow the guidance, we will take swift regulatory action where we have concerns triggered by whistleblowing about closed cultures. (That alright, Helen?) Er, spell “risk assessment”, Kate. The feasibility of low-risk visiting in the ongoing pandemic could hardly be more individual to a given care home.

A visiting system needs careful design and management to keep control and offer alternatives e.g. when notified of a positive test. For all sorts of reasons, renewing contacts necessarily suspended for months must be managed with great empathy. Pods or rooms need sanitising after a visit, from the CQC posture you would think that care homes should just open the front door at 2pm. Staff do still have other duties. Medicines must still be administered. Bathrooms must still be maintained. Dinners must still be served and supported. Care plans must still be kept up to date. Presumably audits are still required. CQC reminds providers that the “rights of individual(s) must be paramount when deciding visiting plans”. Agreed. Last time I checked, those rights included effective infection control systems, resilient to staff shortages as may be from time to time; or to new, more challenging, variants of the virus, preventing deaths from this still unpredictable disease. The word ‘death’ does not come up on a word search of the recent politicking missive from the Commission. The chief inspector claims that CQC does “recognise the complex and difficult situation facing social care”. Not everyone would agree, methinks. HSC Professional (Consultancy) now offers consultations on Zoom. Email me at mail@hsc-prof.com to sign on for regular alerts and updates on coronavirus and the rest. Visit my Facebook page or Twitter page at @hsc_prof to view my videos on notifications, Riddor and more. facebook.com/HSC-ProfessionalConsultancy-1715456902020143/

and we have been delighted to make sure it goes ahead. “We managed to get Peter’s bubble together and have a beer or two for a stag do the night before as well. “The organisation of the wedding has been challenging, but we worked through the risk assessments and with our infection control experts to make sure that it was as safe as it could be.” All visitors to the home were not allowed in until they had returned a negative result from a Lateral Flow test and full PPE was worn at all times.

Residents put dementia in the spotlight

RESIDENTS at Moorgate Croft care home in Rotherham created videos of themselves reading some of their favourite novels and poetry to share with the local community, and to shine a light on those living with dementia on World Book Day. They performed excerpts from Dear Dementia and some more of their favourite books to share with their families and the community on the home’s Facebook page. The social media project is intended to recreate the sense of grandparents reading to their grandchildren, and to show the benefits of books for mental health and in strengthening the brain for all generations. Manager Ann Wood said: “We are proud to be active members of our local community and in simpler times we love working with local schoolchildren and getting involved in different projects. “World Book Day is a great opportunity for us to do something a bit different, so this year we decided to make these videos to share our love of reading and some of our favourite stories with our friends, families and followers on Facebook. “We also wanted to make a difference by shining a light on dementia this World Book Day.”

Provider unveils plans for major development A MULTI-million pound scheme to build a state-ofthe-art care facility at Ashington has been unveiled by Malhotra Group PLC. The company’s care segment, Prestwick Care, has applied for planning permission to create a 58-bed care home, along with a second 12-bedroom specialist unit. And, if the £10m project is given the green light, it will mean the area will have a much-needed stateof-the-art facility, along with creating more than 100 jobs. The proposed scheme will be built on 1.75 acres of what is currently brownfield land, which was previously occupied by Essendene care home before it was demolished. Along with the 58 bedrooms, the main building will include leisure, dining, treatment and administration facilities, all designed to care for those in need of general nursing and elderly people with decreased mental capacity. A second single storey 12 bedroom unit is also proposed, which will be equipped to care for YPD / young, physically disabled people and those suffering from brain injuries. Bunty Malhotra, CEO of Malhotra Group PLC and its care division, Prestwick Care, said: “The company is delighted to announce this new

Malhotra Group PLC CEO Bunty Malhotra. investment which will create jobs for the local community and will provide a much-needed facility. “The development will bring a real boost to the local economy, which is particularly welcome news

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in the current tough financial environment.” Around 50 jobs will be created in the company’s construction division to build the development. Ian Tubman, Malhotra Group project director, added: “The building will bring back to life the unused site by providing an important facility for its residents, including specialist care. “The quality of the facility will be first class and will include designed features to ensure it feels like a real home. The secure and well maintained gardens will include planting to encourage wildlife, while also being attractive for the residents to use.” The scheme is being developed for Malhotra Group PLC by Space Architects, which has put together a plan which offers a range of environmentally friendly measures, as well as creating a facility which will be vital in dealing with the predicted significant increase in the numbers of elderly people in Northumberland. An application for planning permission was submitted to Northumberland County Council on December 21. The new scheme will be the second major development in Northumberland by Malhotra Group PLC, following on from the opening last year of the purpose-build 86 bedroom Beech Tree House in Alnwick.

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Home undergoes £1.4m refurb SUNRISE of Cardiff is receiving major refurbishment works as the operator looks to deliver an ambitious overhaul of communal areas, corridors, residents’ suites, offices and other areas of the care home. The £1.4million project also includes the conversion of the site’s second floor into a comprehensive Memory Care Neighbourhood, as the demand for care services for those with dementia or cognitive impairment continues to soar. The care home has not received an update to its interiors since its opening in 2007, resulting in many aspects of the facility tiring and falling out of favour with current trends. In response, Sunrise Senior Living UK see the comprehensive refurbishment works not only improving its internal appearance, but delivering important functional improvements. James Minchin, head of technical and commercial at Sunrise Senior Living UK, said: “Our plans are driven by an overarching mission to reflect the natural and architectural heritage of Sunrise of Cardiff’s surrounding area, while prioritising the needs of residents by improving the operational functions of the care home. “We’ve also gone to great lengths to include existing residents and team members within the design process to ensure that the incumbent community will feel at home in their refreshed care home.” With more green spaces per person

than any other core UK city, the project team sought to reflect the natural surroundings within the care home’s updated colour themes. This theme also took inspiration from the castles which remain standing in Cardiff, resulting in refined colour palettes distinct to each of the care home’s four floors. Danica Mrozek, interior design manager at Sunrise Senior Living UK, added: “We recognise that all residents have their own individual needs and we wanted this understanding to permeate all aspects of the design to ensure that Sunrise of Cardiff remains comfortable and adaptable to these requirements. “This includes offering designated spaces suited to different activities, such as a large bistro for socialising with friends and family and a

quiet library for reading, as well as providing a variety of different seating styles to cater to our residents’ varying preferences. “As part of this commitment, we encouraged residents at the care home to be involved in the selection process for new furniture to help us select the most ergonomically suitable options, while aiding independence and encouraging selfreliance.” To achieve this, Danica and her team introduced a variety of suitable chairs into the home for residents to try and provide feedback on. Residents were then invited to participate in a survey on their preference of chair, with the overall favourite subsequently being purchased for the refurbishment works. The refurbishment programme has

also delivered an innovative visiting area in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the need for a secure yet comfortable area for residents’ friends and families to visit the care home. This designated space, which was previously the care home’s sun porch, was fitted with a floor to ceiling glass screen to segregate visitors from residents and prevent infection by blocking cross-contamination. The existing window was also converted into double doors to ensure that residents and visitors enter the space separately. The refurbishment has also looked to use environmentally friendly products in all areas of the works, ranging from carpeting and furniture, through to lighting and fixtures. Phil Andrews, senior development and property director at Sunrise Senior Living UK, said: “I am delighted with the progress that our major refurbishment project has made over the last year. “Residents at Sunrise of Cardiff are already thrilled with the dramatic updates that we have delivered, and concerted efforts have been made to ensure that they experience minimal disruption to their daily lives while these works have been carried out. “Once completed, I know that residents, team members and family members will thoroughly enjoy the renewed appearance and improved functions at Sunrise of Cardiff.” The work is set to be completed in May.

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Why providing service users with healthy food options is not enough By Barry Price WHEN writing about nutritional psychology, diet and mental health, the Budget would seem an odd place to start. But it’s where I’ll begin. When Chancellor Sunak arrived in the Houses of Parliament last Wednesday to deliver his budget, I don’t think anyone could have envisaged quite how damaging it would be for the care sector. A statement from the National Care Forum, which represents notfor-profit providers, said it all. It simply read, “there is nothing in this Budget for social care… Not even an acknowledgement of the incredible dedication and commitment of the social care workforce”. But you’d be forgiven for wondering what any of this has to do with the psychology of nutrition and hydration best practice. Well, when we talk about eating, it’s not just a physical experience, there are psychological and social dimensions to consider too. To understand the nuances, requires training, education and a full complement of staff. Quality Compliance Systems (QCS), the leading provider of content, guidance and standards for the care sector, has made great strides in this area by creating care plans and example templates that help staff to understand what to include in a nutrition and hydration plan, as well as a fully comprehensive nutrition

Barry Price

and hydration policy and procedure. But, delivering a holistic personcentred nutrition and hydration plan also requires the right level of funding, which – due to a disappointing Budget – won’t be there. Let’s take a large residential care home, that houses around 50 residents, for example. Due to traditional funding and retention challenges, the home is short staffed. But it still needs to support 60 people, many of whom require help with eating. With staff numbers low, often there’s pressure to rush preparations so that they can fulfil the many other duties that they’ve been tasked with. In doing so, however, staff often

neglect presentation, which could stop service users from wanting to eat their meals. However, being able to enjoy the full dining experience is much more than biting, swallowing and digesting. Looking, tasking and smelling the food is an integral part of the mealtime experience, and sadly many homes are depriving their service users of this opportunity. In a time of Covid, where budgets are stretched, it is extremely challenging for homes to break this vicious circle they find themselves in. Ultimately, they’ve been let down by a lack of funding which doesn’t allow them to bring extra staff in at meal times. I’m not saying I have all of the answers. I don’t. But, if they are willing to think out of the box, there are solutions they can employ which can positively transform the dining experience in their services. I know this because I found myself in exactly the same position that they find themselves in now. At the time, I was a business manager and was brought in to the residential care home to support the registered manager after two CQC inspections flagged that the home required improvement. To give my service users the best culinary experience possible, we agreed to hire an ex-restaurant chef. It was the best decision we made because the chef, who worked from 9am until 2pm, was a master in food preparation and presentation. He

began by creating a series of healthy menus. For those on a soft diet, he would pipe potatoes, carrots and peas, and he even found time to bake fresh scones, Viennese whirls and homemade cakes – all of which were much healthier than the supermarket bought biscuits we previously offered residents. However, it wasn’t all just about healthy eating. The single appointment helped to strengthen the person-centred culture within the home. How? Well, almost overnight, we witnessed a profound change in our service users. They began to look forward to meal times. It became a sociable experience, rather than a dull and monotonous one. Friends and families took note. They began to visit their relatives more often and that in itself created a greater ambience at meal times. And most astonishing of all? The cost of employing a professional chef was much less than hiring a traditional caterer. In the coming months and years, as the nation pays down the growing mountain of debt accrued by Covid, more and more care homes will need to think this way. But they shouldn’t have to. Government ministers, who applauded carers during the pandemic, need to now put their hands in the pockets and pay the sector what it deserves, as clapping only gets you so far. n Barry Price is a care professional, a consultant and an expert insights author for QCS.

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Shop’s staff make no bones about home’s tricky orders STAFF at a Somerset fish and chip shop have won praise for their helpful attitude from a local dementia care home for ‘making no bones’ about taking long and complicated orders and never complaining if it has to be changed. The tasty takeaway fish and chip suppers cooked up by Star Fish Bar in Wellington are proving a winner with residents of neighbouring Camelot House and Lodge who say they spark memories of happy times shared with family and friends. When residents were asked to choose a new idea from a list of activities that can be carried out in a Covid-safe way many of them pounced on the suggestion of takeaway fish and chips, said activities organiser Richard Dempslake. “They started excitedly talking about their favourite fish, and comparing notes on takeaway suppers they’d enjoyed in their younger days,” he added. “Some like to eat with their fingers. For others the most important thing is adding the right amount of salt and vinegar or ketchup. “They reminisce about eating fish and chips wrapped in newspaper on the beach during seaside holidays, or sometimes talk about ‘takeaway evenings’ shared with family as a treat, or with old friends after outings to the pub. Richard said he and his team have

Resident Cindy Williams tucks into her fish and chips. had to exercise their imagination throughout the pandemic to ensure residents continue to enjoy a varied programme of activities. He added: “It’s so hard for the people we care for because most of them don’t really understand the impact that coronavirus is having on the world. “They have to put up with restrictions on visits from loved ones, and they miss the regular outings we used to take them on, so it’s extra important for us to dream up new ideas to keep them engaged in the world day-to-day. “We continue to offer a wide daily selection of creative and therapeutic activities and have been very creative in putting on performances and theme days for our residents. “But the smiles on their faces as they dig into takeaway fish and chips show that sometimes the simplest pleasures are the best.”

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Care standards improve at Telford nursing home A TELFORD nursing home which was criticised last year by the industry regulator has turned around its fortunes. Myford House in Horsehay has been rated with an overall ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission after a report last January concluded that improvements needed to be made. The home received an unannounced visit from inspectors last month who left satisfied with the range of largescale improvements made to the home’s overall care, safety, hygiene and training standards. The nursing home has been managed for the past 12 months by experienced care expert Sharon Perry who has introduced a package of improvements which has included developing the nursing team, intense training, overhauled supervision of residents and an activity programme with better links with the local community and health practitioners. She said: “It has been a hugely

challenging and emotional 12 months for us. “Alongside putting vigorous infection control measures in place because of Covid-19, behind the scenes we have been overhauling our approach on all aspects of our care, training, staff and general standards. “To get confirmation from the regulator that we are going in the right direction is fantastic. “We have worked night and day to progress and make improvements, and whilst more still has to be done to move us up another level, I am delighted. “We have made a raft of positive changes and the feedback from residents and their loved ones has been good, especially on things like introducing a range of weekly therapy expert programmes we have put in place. We have left no stone unturned to bring the home’s care and reputation back to where it should be but we won’t stop here.”

Thursday 2nd December 2021,

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