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News Release: Care Home Open Day 2017

 

For the fifth year in a row, care homes across Scotland and the rest of the UK are encouraging their local communities to join them for a day of celebration.

Care Home Open Day takes place on Friday 16th June this year and is growing in popularity as more and more care homes realise the importance of developing lasting relationships with their local communities and dispelling myths by showcasing what good care homes look like.

The day reinforces the fantastic work being done in care homes across the UK and helps to highlight that care homes are doing great things 365 days a year!

Last year over 150 care homes took part across Scotland and this year is set to be even bigger. A significant number of politicians have already committed to visiting care homes in their constituencies.

Care Home Open Day is taking place during the first ever Care Home Week in Scotland, co-ordinated by Scottish Care. From 12-19 June 2017, Care Home Week is an opportunity to celebrate all aspects of life and work in a care home.

Donald Macaskill, CEO of Scottish Care who represent independent sector care homes, said:

“Creating more links between care homes and their local communities is so important. That's why Scottish Care, the Care Inspectorate and the other representative bodies from across the UK are supporting Care Home Open Day again this year. I'm sure it will be a great day."
“It is a great opportunity to celebrate the fantastic care carried out in local communities and the contribution that is made to the lives of so many people and their families, as well as to redress the negative perceptions people often have of care homes.
“We have encouraged all care homes to take part to showcase what they do day-in and day-out, and invite their local communities to visit. After all, there are more people living in care homes than in hospital any night of the year and therefore these services and their residents should be considered as central parts of their local communities.”

Karen Reid, Chief Executive of the Care Inspectorate said:

“Care homes play a vital role supporting people across Scotland and we are delighted to support Care Home Open Day. I hope it is a great success.
"We expect residents in care homes to be supported to be involved and active in their local community, where that is what they want, so this is a really important day.
“Everyone in Scotland has the right to safe, compassionate, high-quality care which meets their needs and respects their rights. The new health and social care standards published just a few days ago really help to reinforce this.
“Our regular inspections show that most care homes in Scotland perform well, but we do work closely to support improvement where that is needed. We recognise and share excellent practice across the sector whenever we find it. We will continue to champion good practice, working with residents, carers, staff and other people involved in care.”

 

To find out which care homes are taking part in your area, simply visit www.carehomeopenday.org.uk and search via postcode, town or care home name.

For more details on Care Home Week 17 please visit: www.scottishcare.org/care-home-week/

 

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‘Come On In’: resource for families

On Ordinary Living day of Care Home Week 17, it seems appropriate to highlight the 'Come On In' resource from the Care Inspectorate. 

The guide was launched to help family and friends of people living in care homes to make the most of the time spent together. This resource was developed by the staff, residents and their families of Campbell Snowden care home in Bridge of Weir with support from the Care Inspectorate and Scottish Care.

The guide is short and easy to use with practical tips, from preparing for your visit and giving your visit focus to looking after yourself and very importantly what residents themselves say makes a good visit.

Heather Edwards the Care Inspectorate’s dementia consultant said:

“We know that maintaining close relationships with loved ones is really important for the wellbeing of people living in care, particularly those living with dementia.

“But we also know from our experience, and the experience of the care providers we work with, that it can sometimes be difficult for people to adjust to visiting their loved ones in a new setting, particularly if that person’s behaviour or needs are changing.

“This guide contains some practical, simple advice about how to prepare for and enjoy visiting loved ones.

“For example sometimes people living with dementia don’t talk a great deal. It can be important not to worry about this , and understand that it’s ok to sit quietly together.

“Similarly, instead of asking questions like ‘what did you have for lunch’ which can cause distress if someone can’t remember, you could ask staff what was for lunch, or take a look at the menu, so you can then have a chat about lunch.”

 

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Voices from the Nursing Front Line: Update

Wednesday 14 June is Workforce day, as part of #carehomeweek17, and we are taking this opportunity to highlight the important role of nurses working in care homes.

In November 2016, Scottish Care launched a new report entitled ‘Voices from the Nursing Front Line’.  This report sought to explore the experiences, views and ideas of nurses working in social care through the voices of nurses themselves.  It detailed many of the challenges of nursing within care homes in Scotland, but also the many positive reasons for choosing and remaining in this career path.

The report below provides an update on progress against Scottish Care’s nursing recommendations, outlined in the ‘Voices from the Nursing Front Line’ report.

 

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Focus on care home workforce: nursing films

As part of Care Home Week and especially Workforce day, it is important that we celebrate the range of vital roles undertaken in our care homes.

Nurses are one part of this 54,000-strong workforce.

Over 5,000 nurses work in care homes across Scotland.  These individuals are key contributors in the delivery of quality, person-centred care and support to some of our most vulnerable citizens.

We know there are challenges relating to nurse recruitment and retention sector, and we also know that there are misconceptions about what nursing in care homes is actually like.  In reality, it is a rewarding, challenging and extremely skilled career. 

But who better to explain this than nurses working in the sector?

This series of short films highlight nurses who are working across Scotland in care homes, and are role models for us all in terms of the passion, dedication and professionalism they show in their work:

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Arts & Engagement – Care and Create event

Today we are focusing on Arts and Engagement as part of our week-long celebration of those who live and work in care homes. 

In complement to the theme, Scottish Care members may wish to consider attending the following upcoming event, organised by Luminate along with ArtWorks Scotland, Creative Scotland and the Care Inspectorate. 

Please see the full details below and on the Scottish Care events page, with details on registration to attend via the links.

#carehomeweek17

 

 

Care and Create – arts and older people

A workshop event for care professionals and artists working with older people in care

Thursday, 29th June 2017

11am – 3:30pm

Edinburgh

Care and Create will bring care professionals, artists and cultural organisations together to create a shared understanding of good practice and explore opportunities to work together.

This event will include presentations of inspring arts projects for older people experiencing care, facilitated discussion sessions and a networking lunch. It will enable artists, cultural organisations and care professionals to explore the opportunities and  challenges of delivering creative projects in the care community, broaden their understanding of good practice and discuss ways of connecting and working together.

Attendees will:

  • gain a better understanding of the arts world and the roles artists might play in care services
  • gain a better understanding of good practice in care provision and the opportunities and challenges faced by the sector
  • broaden your view of how professional artists can creatively collaborate with the care community and create successful projects

Workshop will be facilitated by Kate Organ.

 

Speakers will include:

  • Paula Brown, Arora, Scotland
  • Anne Gallacher, Director, Luminate
  • Noortje Kessels and Maaike Mul, Wintertuin, Netherlands
  • Natalie McFadyen-White, Impact Arts, Scotland
  • Carol Reilly, Care Home Manager, Catmoor House, Scotland

Presented by ArtWorks Scotland, Creative Scotland, the Care Inspectorate and Luminate

Venue: City of Edinburgh Methodist Church, 25 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh EH8 9BX

 

Admission: Free but advance booking is essential.

Please note: spaces are limited so bookings are restricted to one place per organisation

Lunch included. Teas/coffees available from 10:30am.

 

Booking: For more information and event registration, visit Eventbrite at

https://careandcreate.eventbrite.co.uk

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Arts in Care project: note your interest by 23 June

As part of #CareHomeWeek17 Scottish Care are today celebrating arts & engagement opportunities in our independent sector care services.

The arts have become an increasing focus of Scottish Care’s work, not only in terms of the importance of ensuring older people continue to be able to express their creativity but also in sharing the extraordinary lives and stories of those who live and work in care services.  This has been evidenced in the ‘Directed by North Merchiston’ film series and the films produced for recent Scottish Care Conferences and Awards, including ‘What A Difference Good Care Makes’.

We are therefore delighted to announce plans for a new collaborative arts project between Scottish Care and Luminate, Scotland’s creative ageing festival .

We are looking to identify a care home or day care service who would like to take forward a new funded arts initiative with us.  This project will:

* Get underway in August, with the intention of sharing the results as part of the Luminate festival in October.

* Be premised on engaging residents/service users in the arts

* Involve working with a professional artist, but have a particular focus on involving staff as equal partners/participants in the project

* Be flexible to the choice of artform and artist (which won’t be a film).  This will be chosen in partnership with the successful care service

This project will lead into a larger piece of work in 2018, which will be open to engagement with more services and artists.

However at this stage, only one service will be selected to be involved.

If you are interested in taking part or finding out more, please email [email protected] with a short description of your service and why you would like to be involved.

The closing date for expressions of interest is Friday 23rd June 2017.

We look forward to hearing from you regarding this exciting opportunity.

#carehomeweek17

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Arts & Engagement – Opportunity to get involved with Luminate

Invitation to be part of Luminate, Scotland’s creative ageing festival

There’s no better way to support Arts and Engagement day during #carehomeweek17, than to consider getting involved in this year’s Luminate festival.

 October 2017 will once again see an innovative and vibrant nationwide programme offering a wealth of creative experiences that prove that creativity has no age. Organisations, groups and individuals are now invited to put an event forward to be a part of this year’s festival.  It is a chance to celebrate creativity, share stories, and to explore what ageing means to all of us, providing a national platform for local creative activities by, with and for older people in Scotland.

The 2016 festival included an enormous range of creative events for older audiences all across Scotland, from workshops in care homes to performances in professional arts venues, and from exhibitions of artwork by older community members to creative activities that brought the generations together.  We worked in cities, towns and rural communities across Scotland.

Previous festivals have included:

  • Creative activities and performances in care settings or for older people’s social groups
  • Exhibitions and performances of work by older artists, both amateur and professional
  • Arts projects bringing together the generations, giving older and younger people the chance to take part as equal partners
  • Special offers for older people, for example theatre ticket deals including the chance to meet and have a cup of tea together afterwards
  • Plays, poetry readings and film screenings that feature stories of ageing

The deadline for proposals this year is 5pm on Friday 30th June for inclusion in the brochure, and 5pm on Friday 4th August for inclusion online only.  To find out more about Luminate and to apply online, visit: http://www.luminatescotland.org/luminate-proposal.

For any additional information, or to request a hard copy of the application form, contact Luminate by phone on 0131 668 8066 or email [email protected].

 

 

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News release: Week dedicated to busting care home myths

Today (Monday) marks the start of a week of celebration of Scotland’s care homes.

Care Home Week runs from 12-18 June 2017 and is the first event of its kind in Scotland.  The week aims to bust some myths about care homes and tell their vast number of good news stories.  Across the course of the week, a variety of events will take place and a range of stories will be shared, celebrating different elements of care home life.

In Scotland there are:

  • Over 1,100 care homes
  • Over 36,000 residents
  • Nearly 54,000 staff employed
  • Over 5,000 nurses

Care Home Week will be celebrating individuals who live and work in care homes, their role in local communities and the opportunities care homes offer to enhance lives and improve wellbeing for a wide range of people.

The week is being led by Scottish Care, the representative body for independent sector care services.  CEO, Dr Donald Macaskill, said:

“We’re calling for people all over Scotland to join us in celebrating care homes and the vital role they play in our communities.

“All too often, the stories that people hear about care homes are the bad ones – when things have gone wrong.  Whilst it is important that these failures are exposed, thankfully they are rare and are in no way representative of the amazing care provided by the vast majority of services. 

“In reality, good news stories happen day in, day out in our care homes.  These include examples of innovative care delivery, dedicated staff, partnerships with local communities and inspirational achievements of care home residents.  These stories are what we want to highlight throughout Care Home Week, and we want other people to share their experiences with us.

“It’s time that we as a society value our care home services much more.”

As part of Care Home Week, Scotland will be celebrating Care Home Open Day 2017. Now in its fifth year, the Open Day takes place on Friday 16th June 2017.  On this day, care homes across the UK will be opening their doors to their local communities and inviting people in to find out more about care homes and the amazing people who live and work in them.   To find out which care homes are taking part in your area, simply visit www.carehomeopenday.org.uk and search via postcode, town or care home name.

More information about Care Home Week, Care Home Open Day and the other events planned for the week can be found at www.scottishcare.org/care-home-week/

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Launch of Anticipatory Care Planning Toolkit

A new Toolkit for Anticipatory Care Planning has been launched by Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s ihub.

Anticipatory Care Planning is about individual people thinking ahead and understanding their health.  It’s about knowing how to use services better and it helps people make choices about their future care.

Planning ahead can help the individual be more in control and able to manage any changes in their health and wellbeing.

The Toolkit can be accessed here.