Sleep – Sorted?
What does poor sleep cost you? Your family? Your staff and care home residents? Poor sleep makes us unhappy and affects our mental and physical health. It is the biggest reason why people go into residential care. And within care homes, it costs. The Zeez Sleep Pebble prompts the natural brain activity of good sleep, gently and safely. Its tiny pulses match the alpha, theta and delta brainwaves of a good sleeper, at appropriate times in the sleep cycles. Most people respond by adopting the same pattern. We have users aged 20 –90 and hundreds of reviews averaging 4.8*. Pre-pandemic, we worked with people with dementia. An NHS Dementia Assessment unit saw the sleep of its poorest sleeper transform from “very bad” to “very good” in three weeks – from 2-5 to 6-9 hours/night. We are now looking for care home partners to trial the Zeez and expect to deliver more night-time sleep and better daytime energy for users. Contact us for info. We also have a £50 reduction on purchases of the Zeez Sleep Pebble until April 30th 2023 (code “care” via our website). info@zeez.org.uk www.zeez.org.uk/care t 0208 3478734
New recipe to support people with dementia in Yorkshire
Leading Yorkshire care provider HICA Group has cooked up a new way to help support people suffering from dementia. The Hull-based not-for-profit care home group is always considering innovative ideas to improve the lives of those living with dementia. The latest project is the design and production of a unique baking book to encourage residents to take up baking and cooking activities across its care homes. The book contains well known and much-loved recipes from residents, their families and members of staff – with each holding a special place in someone’s heart. HICA Group, which provides residential and dementia care for residents across Yorkshire, published the bespoke bakery book with the support of catering partner, Apetito, which generously paid for the cost of getting the book printed. Research shows that baking and associated activities are particularly beneficial for those living with dementia, as it encourages a sense of self-worth and purpose and helps to create positive feelings such as joy, reducing stress and agitation. It’s also a good tool for helping to alleviate depression which is very common in those who have dementia. Mark Midgley, hospitality and wellbeing manager, HICA Group, said: “Baking is one the most enriching activities a person can do but it’s especially valuable for those living with a cognitive condition such as dementia. “One great benefit of baking is that it’s a fantastic reminiscence tool, evoking memories of when they used to bake at home and enjoy delicious family meal occasions. “It brings our sensory system alive meaning the feeling of flour in hands or the smell of icing can trigger nostalgia for our residents helping them to recall happy, cheerful memories. “The book is truly wonderful and copies are being circulated across all of our homes so that residents can try a range of recipes to make different types of food. “I want to express a huge thank you to all those who were involved and shared with us some of their best loved recipes – we can’t wait to sample some of the baking delights.” Around 100 copies being distributed across all of HICA’s homes in the region which are Albemarle in Hedon, Red House in Bridlington, The Hollies in Hessle, Overton House in Cottingham, Tamarix Lodge in Withernsea and Raleigh Court and Wilton Lodge in Hull. Harold, a resident, said: “I was delighted to give my recipe for ginger snaps to be used in the baking book. I love ginger and have always loved ginger snaps. I am looking forward to making them again with my friends and sharing them with everyone. They are always best if you dunk them in a cup of tea!”
6 ways Workforce Management Software helps care providers.
Care providers face a delicate balance as they juggle the provision of exceptional care while ensuring operational efficiency and attracting and retaining employees. Many care providers are reliant on paper or spreadsheet-based processes to manage employee management tasks such as time and attendance, absence, scheduling and HR management. Workforce Management Software automates these processes, eliminating time-consuming manual administration and providing a single central system for complete employee management. The use of Workforce Management Software can transform employee management for the better offering benefits to service users, employees and the organisation as a whole. Read on to discover 6 benefits workforce management software brings to care providers, 1. Reduced costsWage costs are the single largest expense category for most care providers so maintaining effective control of employee Time and Attendance is a significant determining factor for a care provider’s efficiency as well as its payroll costs. A Workforce Management System allows care providers to automate the collection, manipulation and processing of employees’ Time and Attendance in one single system. This results in complete control and transparency in relation to payroll costs and enables care providers to easily identify and eliminate hidden labour costs, generating cost savings and ensuring their labour budget is being effectively utilised. 2. Improved payroll accuracyA Workforce Management System helps you easily manage complex working patterns such as annualised hours, flexitime, part-time and shift working, while automatically assigning the correct pay rates no matter how many different pay rules are in place. This removes the need for manual calculations and significantly improves payroll accuracy eliminating under or over-payments 3. Optimized employee scheduling Effective employee Scheduling/Rostering is the building block for the provision of excellent care. Many care providers still use spreadsheets or paper-based rosters to manage employee scheduling. This is time-consuming and results in a lack of oversight of employee time and attendance across the organisation, making it difficult to fill gaps created by absences or leave which can often result in the use of costly agency staff. Choosing a Workforce Management System with automated Employee Scheduling functionality frees up managers from the administrative burden of manual scheduling and allows schedules to be created weeks even months in advance. 4. Regulatory complianceIn most jurisdictions, employers now have a statutory duty to keep records and take reasonable steps to ensure that working hours comply with local Working Time Legislation. Ensuring legislative compliance can be both challenging and time-consuming but failure to prove compliance can result in significant fines, employee lawsuits and a damaged reputation. A Workforce Management System takes the hard work out of compliance. To protect employers from inadvertent breaches of the legislation, rules can be built in to ensure employees can only be scheduled if their working time complies with legislation. With all working time and attendance records available in one central system, reports can easily be extracted to prove compliance, saving time, protecting the care provider from possible fines and contributing towards a healthy and safe working environment. 5. Enhanced resident careKeeping up-to-date records of employee skills, training and certifications is not just nice to have, it’s critical for care homes with their specialised skill requirements. A Workforce Management System with skills tracking enables care homes to keep a record of each employee’s skills and certifications along with expiry dates where relevant ensuring this information is always up-to-date and that considerably less time is spent on its administration. 6. Increase employee satisfaction One of the most useful features of a Workforce Management System is the Employee Self-Service App which can be accessed on a smartphone, desktop or laptop. Using the Self-Service App, employees can update their personal records to reflect changes such as bank details or addresses straight away – no emails and no waiting for HR to confirm receipt. Employee Self-Service gives employees more control over their working lives and contributes significantly towards improving employee empowerment and satisfaction. In summary With the increased demand for complex care, the need for visibility and control of operating costs and the requirement to ensure employee satisfaction, it’s never been more important to have effective workforce management in place for care homes. Using a Workforce Management system specifically designed for the challenges faced by care homes helps improve operational efficiency, improve employee satisfaction and support the provision of superior resident care. To view a Demo of Softworks Workforce Management Software for Care Providers visit softworks.com or email hello@softworks.com
Gillingham care home resident shares remarkable story for International Women’s Day
A resident at Care South’s Gillingham care home, Fern Brook Lodge has shared her remarkable life story in celebration of International Women’s Day. Myrtha Parsons-Biedermann, known as Myra, was born in Switzerland in 1927 and in 1947, after seeing an advert to act as paid help in a country estate in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, left her life in Switzerland with her friend Martha and began her new adventure in England. Myra and Martha alighted a train at London Victoria in June 1947 with no idea how to get to the country estate, and unable to speak a word of English. A woman in uniform helped them and they discovered there were no more trains to Chipping Norton that day. Myra and Martha had to sleep on sofas in the lounge of a hotel before getting a train the next day. At every stop they asked: “Chipping Norton?” until they finally arrived and were met by a driver. Myra began her work alongside Martha, a butler, a footman, lady’s maid, cook, two kitchen hands and three housemaids. There were 11 servants in total including the two Swiss girls. On occasion Myra and Martha went into Oxford where they met two English soldiers, one of whom Myra started a relationship with and would write to using a dictionary to pick out words as her English was still poor. On 28th February 1948, Myra married Roy Evan Parsons at Oxford Register after only knowing each other a few months and lost her Swiss citizenship rights becoming “British by marriage”. Six months after starting her job at Barton Abbey, Myra quit and moved into Roy’s mother’s house while Roy had to return to an army base in Dusseldorf. Myra took a variety of jobs including working on the sweet counter at Woolworths where chocolates, sweets and liquorice were still rationed. Myra travelled home to Winznau while Roy was still in Dusseldorf but her money only got her as far as Basel. She left her passport and address with the police and managed to continue her journey to Winznau, where she stayed with her parents for a few months until Roy returned to Oxford. In 1951, Myra and Roy had a baby girl, Yvonne, who was born at the Military hospital in Wuppertal, and they rented a large apartment overlooking the River Rhein. Myra and Yvonne spent many years travelling around including living in Malaysia for a couple of years while Roy fought in the war between South Korea and North Korea. Later they returned to England to live in Woking until 1960 when the British Army let Roy go at the age of 34 due to personnel cuts. He received a redundancy fee and a small pension and the family all moved back to Switzerland. Seven years after Roy’s death Myra met Sidney who became her late love. They travelled far and wide together and regularly met to play Bridge. Myra now lives at Fern Brook Lodge care home in the north Dorset countryside under the care of Care South which employs a large number of female employees all of whom have been sent a thank you card to mark the day. Myra said: “I do not regret anything I have done in my lifetime and moving to England was the best decision I have ever made.” To hear more from Myra about her life at Fern Brook Lodge, visit the Care South website here: www.care-south.co.uk/video/myra-interview/
‘Adopt a Grandparent’ strengthened in mission to combat loneliness amongst UK elderly with appointment of Irwin Mitchell as official legal sponsor
‘Adopt a Grandparent’ is being supported in its mission to tackle loneliness in UK care homes and beyond following the appointment of leading law firm Irwin Mitchell as its legal sponsor – who will support the charity in its 2023 plans to connect more than 100,000 people across social care and local communities. The two are joining forces via a tailored package that will see Irwin Mitchell support the charity’s efforts to combat loneliness – having already donated £10,000 to enable the award-winning scheme to launch a digital app to facilitate, streamline and speed up its ‘adoption’ process. The legal firm will also include links from the Adopt a Grandparent website to the firm’s website, for those in need of additional support. Founded in 2019, Adopt a Grandparent is an independent charity committed to reducing feelings of loneliness and isolation by pairing volunteers with the elderly community. By bringing people together, the charity aims to support people in developing meaningful and lasting relationships – with more than 90,000 people signed up across the globe. Some of its existing volunteers include Hollywood stars such as Ruby Rose and Bitsie Tulloch, while the non-for-profit initiative has also been endorsed by The Duke of Edinburgh charity as part of its volunteering section. The sponsorship comes off the back of the announcement of Andy Doherty joining Adopt a Grandparent as its new Director of Fundraising – as the charity sets out its 2023 plans to reach 100,000 sign-ups globally. Shaleeza Hasham, the founder of Adopt a Grandparent, said: “When we started on this path in 2019, we wanted to take action to abolish loneliness among the old and young alike. We’ve been overwhelmed with support and are delighted to welcome Irwin Mitchell as our legal sponsor. “Having already spoken on some of Irwin Mitchell’s podcasts, I know the firm understands what we are trying to achieve and with their support I’m sure we can continue to reduce loneliness and bring more people together in the year ahead.” Over nine million people in the UK are impacted by loneliness each year, while 200,000 older people haven’t had a meaningful conversation in over a month. This ‘loneliness epidemic’ has been shown to increase the risk of heart disease, cognitive decline, and dementia. The initial focus of Adopt a Grandparent was to identify and connect willing virtual volunteers with lonely older people via video chat. Volunteers would apply to join the scheme, which would see them outline their hobbies, activities, and interests, before being manually vetted and paired with the perfect candidate – with both parties then benefiting from rewarding intergenerational relationships forged on life experience and similar interests. What started as a small project in Surrey has grown to be a global phenomenon and as the charity’s legal sponsor, Irwin Mitchell will be using experience gained through its own later life programmes and campaigns to help the charity raise awareness of the impact of loneliness and support its broader aims of delivering better outcomes for the people they support. Emma McCann, partner at Irwin Mitchell said: “The long winter period can leave many people feeling lonely or down so this is an important moment to be supporting Adopt a Grandparent, a charity committed to tackling loneliness. “The charity’s objectives tie in with many of our own campaigns and having worked with the charity’s founder, Shaleeza, on some of these in the past, we’re delighted to be able to join forces again, where we can work together to raise awareness of the impact of loneliness and offer practical help for those with specific needs. “The winter season can be a challenge for older people who experience loneliness throughout the year, and many can be embarrassed to admit they are lonely. We’re looking forward to helping Adopt a Grandparent offer solutions and deliver a brighter 2023, where more people in our communities are included and no one has to feel left out.” Those who wish to join Adopt a Grandparent and Irwin Mitchell’s mission to end loneliness in the UK can sign up as a volunteer by visiting the website or downloading the free app, which is available through Apple’s App Store and Google Play. They can also donate to the charity’s GoFundMe page. For more information on Adopt a Grandparent please visit https://www.adoptagrandparent.org.uk/. For more information on Irwin Mitchell, visit https://www.irwinmitchell.com.
Elderly ravers enjoy care home beach party
A BEACH party at a Saltburn care home saw elderly residents painting their faces in UV colours and busting a move to thumping dance music – in a nod to Redcar’s famous Majuba beach festival. Those living at Hazelgrove Court Care Home, on Randolph Street, waved their hands and hankies in the air as DJs from the Woven Nest Theatre put on disco lights and blasted the tunes. The “Rave in the Waves” workshop is delivered by the North East based theatre-company for older people living with dementia, and was commissioned by Redcar, Cleveland and Middlesbrough Council as part of the Creative Health Strategy, funded by South Tees Public Health. Designed as a multi-sensory exploration of the North East coast, the workshop included a cinnamon scented sandy beach, interactive rock pool of hidden items, and waves made from a material that emulates the frothing sea, alongside drumming and dance music. Fourteen residents took part in the rave, run by facilitators Poppy Crawshaw and Liv Hunt, and with sound designer Elliot Mann, all from the Woven Nest Theatre. One of those, Judith Pearson, 79, said: “I never thought I would get to tell my family I had been to a rave.” Joyce Wooffindin, 83, said: “Can we have a rave every day?” Ellen Else, 91, said: “I have never had so much fun.” Sharon Lewis, activities coordinator at Hazelgrove Court Care Home, worked closely with the Woven Nest team to design the workshop to ensure it catered to the residents’ individual needs. She said: “After our conversations, Poppy came back to me and said they’d had this idea to create a rave. We’d never thought of this, so we asked the residents if they’d ever been to a rave before and most of them said no, but they seemed excited. “It was so effective how Woven Nest used storytelling to move us from one section to another, and you feel like you’re being transported somewhere else, but each part was participatory, and the residents were always involved. “Well, after the session had finished, the residents were saying they wanted to rave every day. I could hear residents telling their family members that they’d been at a rave. It just goes to show that no matter what age you are and regardless of whether you live in a care home, you can still have new experiences.” Poppy Crawshaw, from the Woven Nest Theatre, said: “As we moved to the music, there was a genuine feeling of release and freedom. Whether residents were dancing in chairs or getting up to dance, it felt elating to move to music you don’t usually associate with care homes. I think we can all relate to shaking it out and letting go through music and movement. “This is the first time we’ve created a rave in a care home and I’m quite overwhelmed by what a joyous experience it was. There was a moment when we were recreating the waves with a material than emulates the froth of the sea, and the residents were shrieking and laughing and lifting their feet to catch the waves. So simple but so impactful.”
Apprenticeship Programme Bridges Gap Between Care and Nursing Sanctuary Care’s Fast Track Route to Nursing Aims to Futureproof Care Sector
A Nursing Associates Programme launched by not-for-profit care provider, Sanctuary Care, seeks to bridge the gap between care and nursing roles. The two-year scheme enables apprentices to gain valuable on-the-job experience in the care sector, whilst studying for nationally recognised nursing qualifications to advance their careers. The scheme seeks to upskill care assistants to supplement nursing and clinical teams, whilst tackling recruitment challenges facing the health and social care sector. These issues have become increasingly prevalent in recent years, with a 62% increase in vacant care home nursing posts reported between 2020/21 and 2021/22[2]. The Nursing Associates Programme is fully funded by Sanctuary Care, which provides residential, dementia and nursing care in over 100 homes across England and Scotland. It enables students to gain alevel 5 foundation degree, and upon graduating, register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council to move into permanent roles as nursing associates within Sanctuary Care homes. The apprenticeship sees academic study complemented by clinical work experience with Sanctuary Care and partnership organisations across NHS sites, GP practices, learning disability schemes and children’s services, ensuring students develop the skills to deliver safe and effective care to residents. The programme has so far seen five apprentices successfully complete a Nursing Associate Foundation Degree at Plymouth University, the University of Greenwich and the University of Derby. Charlie Moore, 23 from Exeter was amongst the scheme’s first graduates, gaining a Nursing Associate Foundation Degree from Plymouth University in 2021. Charlie said: “I had initially secured a place at university where I planned to study Law, but I decided to take a gap year and joined Greenslades Nursing Home as a Care Assistant. It was never intended to be a permanent, but I loved working in care from day one, and when the opportunity to study to become a nursing associate arose, I didn’t look back.” Charlie completed her qualifications during the peak of the pandemic which saw a move to online learning, whilst working on the front-line delivering the highest quality of care to Sanctuary Care residents. Sarah Clarke Kuehn, Sanctuary Care Director, said: “Attracting new talent to the care sector can be a challenge, as many people are unaware of the varied benefits and career opportunities available within the industry, of which our Nursing Associate Programme is just one example. “This scheme enables apprentices to gain valuable on-the-job experience enriching residents’ lives in our care homes, whilst earning an income and gaining nationally recognised qualifications to complement their careers”. Along with the Nursing Associate Apprenticeship, Sanctuary Care offers an Assistant Practitioner Apprenticeship. This scheme also provides an alternative route to nursing qualifications, bridging the gap between care and nursing roles, with apprentices learning to carry out clinical duties such as monitoring vital signs and administering medication. CASE STUDIES Billy Pattison’s Journey from the Army to Nursing Associate Apprentice Moving from a role in the army to a career in care, Billy Pattison, 31, started his career at Sanctuary Care’s Fernihurst Nursing Home in Exmouth, which provides expert residential, dementia and nursing care for elderly residents in the local community. He joined in 2015 as a domestic and kitchen assistant but quickly realised care was his true calling. He started his Nursing Associate Apprenticeship when he was a Senior Care Assistant and wanted to develop in the direction of nursing. Now in the final stretch of the two-year programme, Billy said: “Working in care has made me realise the vital job that care and nursing home workers do, day in and day out, bringing that little bit of sunshine to those who need it most.” “The Nursing Associate Apprenticeship has been great in terms of my own aspirations, but also for the home, enabling the nurses to focus on their role with my support in picking up clinical tasks. I’ve felt my confidence grow and have shown competence in the workplace; I would say to anyone considering an apprenticeship to do it!” Abbie Troop Shines a Light on Becoming An Assistant Practitioner After joining The Laurels Residential and Nursing Home in Derby as a Care Assistant, 22-year-old Abbie Troop knew right away it was her calling. She completed her Assistant Practitioner Apprenticeship, which bridges the gap between care and nursing roles, at the University of Derby in December 2022. She said: “I love knowing that I am making a difference to our residents, making sure they are happy. You build such a good rapport with the residents; they are like your family.” Abbie has a very simple message for anyone considering becoming an apprentice with Sanctuary Care: “Go for it. It’s the best thing I ever did. I feel very proud to be here, I never thought I would be where I am now.” For more information on career opportunities at Sanctuary Care, visit: www.sanctuary-care.co.uk/jobs
HC-One celebrates annual National Apprenticeship Week 2023
Influential homecare CEO spells out the scale of crisis in the sector
Increased demand, a recruitment crisis, poor pay and repeated failures to meet the needs of the most vulnerable members of society are some of the major issues hampering the provision of homecare, according to a leading figure in the sector. Dr Jane Townson, CEO of the Homecare Association, fears people are being ‘neglected in the community’ because of problems impacting the sector. Around 1 million people are estimated to receive homecare in the UK, for a variety of reasons, such as post-hospital care, old age, physical disability, dementia or sensory impairment. In a stark and honest interview with Newcross Healthcare’s Voices of Care podcast, Dr Townson, the boss of the professional association representing and supporting providers of care in people’s own homes, laid bare some of the key challenges facing the sector. These include; Dr Townson said: “We’ve got a population aging with multiple long-term conditions, and obviously the preference of most people is to stay at home surrounded by people that they love in familiar surroundings and able to do what they want when they want. “But we’re seeing staffing issues translate into problems discharging people from hospital. Nuffield Trust reported that one in four people who are stuck in hospital are waiting for homecare and then, at the front end because people are being neglected in the community, they’re deteriorating, ending up in ambulances in A&E when, with some support at home, we could keep them safe and well in their own homes.” Recent research from the Homecare Association found that the average price being paid by public organisations for home care in England after 1 April 2022 remains significantly below the cost of recruiting and retaining a skilled workforce and delivering high-quality, sustainable home care services. Meanwhile, the podcast heard how the pay rate for someone in care was once higher than someone in retail or sales, but is now much less, making the sector unattractive to those looking to decide their careers. Dr Townson said poor pay, terms and conditions was impacting the quality of care people received, adding: “So many councils still purchase home care by the minute. So that puts such a lot of pressure on the care workers. They feel that they’re rushing from one place to the next and they’re in it because they want to make a difference to people’s lives, and they want to meet people’s needs. “But it’s really stressful when you can’t do that. And we’re seeing in some areas an increase in the number of 15-minute visits. You’ve barely parked and got in the door and, somebody got out of their chair and then you’ve got to go again. It’s just not enough time for the level of need that people have. So, the fundamental issue is the lack of investment.” She also criticised the lack of investment from the government in improving the technology and digital tools available to homecare workers, describing the improvements when staff were given just basic smartphones, which made it much easier for them to communicate with each other and access services like online rotas. When discussing solutions to the crisis, Dr Townson called for increased funding for the sector, a clearer pay structure and more flexibility when it comes to training new recruits, including the ability to train remotely. She also called for a greater focus on multi-disciplined teams working together in the community to help those in need of care. She said: “What we’d really like to see, are more multi-disciplinary teams on the ground, because in practice the care worker is talking to the district nurses, the social workers, the hospital staff. And then we can organise the training to support that team, that would start to make quite a big difference because then you start to get that mutual respect as well.” She said the government’s most recent white paper, ‘People At The Heart of Care’ had left her feeling ‘optimistic’ that the need for change was recognised and some of her recommendations would be put into place. She added: “There was a very strong element of a vision that was about keeping people well at home. I think everybody sees the sense of doing that. The rhetoric and the funding don’t quite match, but I think we’re marching inexorably to that point.” Also appearing on the podcast was Mark Story, Head of Learning Innovation at Newcross Healthcare, who said the company recognized issues around pay and was actively trying to do something to improve the situation. Its workforce receives pay 16.4% above the National Living Wage. He explained: “It’s part of our commitment to show that a career in social care or healthcare is a viable career option. “So, as an employer, we’re doing what we can, but there is more to do. But it’s not just about pay. I think there is a pay element to it, but there are also other benefits that we can offer as a result of being a large employer. “And when we come on and talk about career development and enhancing people’s ability to develop their careers, then I think that plays into that mix of what we can offer the healthcare and social care staff as well.” Hosted by healthcare expert Suhail Mirza, the podcast episode featuring Dr Jane Townson is available now alongside previous episodes in the series on various platforms including You Tube, Apple, Spotify and the Newcross Healthcare website
