Enter and view: Elmhurst Residential Home
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Healthwatch Barnet conducted an Enter and View visit to Elmhurst Residential Home, a privately-run home for older people living with dementia, on 24 August 2017. The home also provides a respite service. The visit was part of Healthwatch Barnet’s Enter and View schedule.
Observations by the Enter and View team reported that the environment was clean; the home was well-run with a good atmosphere, happy residents, and satisfied relatives; the quality of food was very good; staff commitment and level of care were impressive; getting up and going to bed was encouraged when a resident does not feel like getting up, but never forced; care planning demonstrated a person-centred approach, while residents and relatives commented that their care plans were easy to understand; hospital discharge had improved from discharging residents late at 23.00 to 18.00, as a result of the home taking part in the Royal Free pilot; residents had access to nearby spiritual services from the Greek Church and the Catholic Church; and generally, residents and relatives felt engaged in how the home was run day to day.
Negative observations were made by the Enter and View team; the home was experiencing long delays in communication regarding DoLs; there was a pleasant garden but it was not used by residents; residents seemed to be unsure or unaware of what activities were available at the home; some areas in the home may not be accessible by all residents.
Healthwatch Barnet made the following recommendations:
1) To consider whether it is possible to make more use of the garden for residents with better access to/from the balcony.
2) To improve access from the sitting room to the terrace for wheelchair users.
3) To consider re-arranging some of the furniture in the lounge area to encourage more socialising.
4) To provide hand-wipes for residents to use prior to eating.
5) Introducing more planned dementia specific activities.
The service provider responded well to the recommendations and gave an action plan to address them.