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A CATALYST FOR CHANGE – WHAT WE’RE DOING

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Beginning in 2020, we are working with social enterprise Community Catalysts, to create a new way for residents and their families to give feedback on our services, giving them the opportunity to be directly involved in shaping the care offered by Borough Care in the future.

Community Catalysts have worked closely with residents and their families to develop ideas and suggestions, as well as giving feedback on what Borough Care does now and its future direction.

The project is part of our ethos at Borough Care, of residents living their ‘Life in Colour’, and was designed to help ensure each and every resident is able to live in a way that reflects who they are and cater to their needs.

On an ongoing basis, the team at Community Catalysts shares the results of the research with families and residents and in turn, we have developed a number of actions and changes that we plan to implement, to help make our residents’ experience at Borough Care the best it can possibly be. Here are just a few of our key changes:

Improved access to technology and internet connections:

  • The best high-speed broadband available will be implemented for every home, starting immediately and will be completed by October 2021.
  • Testing of Wifi reception across all homes will be completed by the end of April 2021.
  • An audit of all hardware (laptops, iPads, etc.) in all homes will be completed by the end of April 2021. Shortfalls in any area will be remedied by the end of May 2021.
  • A skills audit around existing and new equipment will be completed by May 2021, followed by training, or refresher training, as required.

 

A clear system for families to contact residents:

  • A new system will be implemented as soon by the end of May 2021 and will be communicated to all recognised resident contacts, firstly via traditional mail and subsequently via digital channels.
  • Agreed response times, for calls, emails, etc. will be provided for all family contacts.

 

More frequent updates to be shared with families who are unable to visit:

  • We will develop a ‘resident of the day’ approach and implement it in every home by the end of May 2021, providing family members with a full update on their loved one’s care and daily activities.
  • This will include an update, photos, messages and where suitable direct contact, so that each resident is supported in a more individually tailored way, and families are engaged and communicated with regularly.

 

Enhanced food & drink offer:

  • Consultation with residents and personalisation of menus will be supplemented by the ‘Resident of the Day’ programme, which will enable each home’s chef to talk to all residents about their food preferences.
  • Borough Care is now a member of the Vegetarian for Life charity, which provides training and guidance for all the team. More vegetarian and vegan items are being launched.

 

A personal touch:

  • A profile of every resident is currently delivered to carers’ mobile devices every day. There is also a ‘Who I Am’ document for every resident, which includes a huge amount of information about each person and their preferences.
  • A one-page profile will be developed, based on the existing information held, to be regularly updated. With resident and family consent these ‘profiles’ will be displayed in residents’ rooms.

 

Volunteering:

  • Volunteers (family members or otherwise) are welcome and will be encouraged, with volunteering opportunities around the home and during outings promoted and advertised.

The work doesn’t stop here. As we implement these changes, the team at Community Catalysts will continue to speak to our residents and families to gather feedback, and as each new theme emerges, we’ll consider the recommendations and respond accordingly, to ensure we’re able to continuously improve our approach and our services, providing our residents and their loved ones with the best possible experience.