Approach to Care

"The complete life, the perfect pattern, includes old age as well as youth and maturity. The beauty of the morning and the radiance of noon are good, but it would be a very silly person who drew the curtains and turned on the light in order to shut out the tranquillity of the evening. Old age has its pleasures, which, though different, are not less than the pleasures of youth." W Somerset Maugham

Caring for Individuals

Our care philosophy is centred on the individual. Every person we care for is unique and so is every care plan we put together, being specially tailored to meet the needs of that individual.

How does one choose a Caring Home?

When an elderly person chooses to move to a Caring Homes service the first thing that happens is a registered nurse visits to carry out a free-of-charge personal healthcare needs assessment. This is designed to ensure that we fully understand the individual’s needs and that the home they have chosen is able to fully meet those needs. We welcome and encourage family members to be involved at this early stage.

Only if the home is right for that individual is an offer of residency made. Once an offer has been made and accepted, the home’s professional care team work with the resident and their family and loved ones to create a personalised care and support plan.

This is much more than just a ‘healthcare’ plan, although that is also a very important component. The care plan takes into account a person’s life story and aspirations for the future to create a truly holistic package – reflecting spiritual and intellectual, as well as healthcare, needs.

We very much appreciate the fact that moving into a care home is a big decision, and not one to be taken lightly. To provide new residents with added peace of mind Caring Homes offers a ‘Trial Stay’ service. This means that if, after two weeks, a new resident decides that they wish to live elsewhere then they are entirely free to do so. There will be no contractual obligation to pay for any additional time at the home.

Of course, we hope that every new resident will be completely happy with their choice and enjoy a long and fulfilling life in their new home, but we feel it is only right to provide every elderly person with this option and the comfort of knowing that they are free to choose.

Short Term or Long Term Care?

Every one of our homes offers a variety of care packages to meet differing needs. From short term respite care, to convalescent care and the more traditional long term care, Caring Homes can provide a care package to meet your individual needs.

Respite Care

Respite Care is the ideal option for an elderly person who normally lives at home with the care and support of a family member or loved one. Perhaps the carer requires hospital treatment or even a short break? In that case the elderly person can stay at one of our homes for a period of respite care. This can range from one or two nights to a week or a fortnight – the length of time is entirely up to you. The carer and the elderly person can rest safe in the knowledge that their care needs will be met by friendly and professional staff. Many people who choose a Caring Homes home for respite care subsequently decide that is the home for them when they look for longer term care.

Convalescent Care

Sometimes, when an elderly person has spent time in hospital for an operation or illness, they will benefit from a period of convalescent care in a care home before moving back to their own residence. Again, the length of time is determined by the needs of the individual, not by a set ‘package’. With the support of a professional multidisciplinary care team, the elderly person can concentrate on rest and recuperation in a safe and homely environment.

Long Term Care

Simply put, long term care provides elderly residents with care and support in a dedicated environment when they decide that the time has come to make the step away from their own home. At Caring Homes, we firmly believe that this is just another stage on an individual’s life journey. The move to a care home opens up a whole range of new opportunities and avenues for our residents to explore.

Ongoing Care and Support

In our residential homes, each resident has a named key worker, individually responsible for providing care and support. In our nursing homes, in addition to a designated key worker, each resident has a named nurse, responsible specifically for supporting healthcare needs.

Working with each home’s multidisciplinary care team, these designated individuals ensure that each resident’s care and support needs are regularly monitored and that care plans are adapted to meet any changing care needs.

This continuity of support is a vital component of the care we provide and is also reflected in Caring Homes’ approach to support staff. At each of our homes we are determined to keep agency staff use to an absolute minimum. To that end every home develops a ‘bank’ of qualified nursing and care staff, who know our residents and their needs, and who can be called upon to provide additional support where required.

Staff Development and Training

Ensuring the ongoing professional development of our staff is another key facet of the Caring Homes philosophy. We are proud of our highly professional staff and are continually investing in their future. Caring Homes has a dedicated Learning and Development Team to make sure that staff development needs are identified and supported.

Clinical Governance

Caring Homes’ approach to clinical governance is, as one would expect, particularly robust. We have a dedicated Care Services Team tasked with monitoring and maintaining the very highest standards of care throughout the Group. Comprising a Clinical Director, Quality Manager, Regulations Manager and two Care Services Managers – all of whom have nursing and/or regulatory backgrounds, the Care Services Team reports directly to the Chief Executive and acts as our own internal care regulator.

The Care Services Team carries out unannounced inspections at homes up and down the country and these are renowned for being more thorough and detailed than those carried out by the national regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The Team monitors emerging care guidance from the Department of Health, the CQC, the charitable sector and academia, ensuring that our own care policy reflects the very best practice.