Enter and view: Summerdyne Nursing Home

Healthwatch Worcestershire conducted an enter and view visit to Summerdyne Nursing Home. The purpose of the visits were to understand how residents in the settings are being provided with meaningful activities that support their health and well-being and to identify examples of good practice. Healthwatch Worcestershire engaged with the Activities Coordinator, 1 member of staff and had structured conversations with 3 residents.

Healthwatch Worcestershire heard and saw care staff speaking to residents in their rooms and as they went about their duties. These conversations were positive, friendly and respectful. Residents that were spoke to said that they had been asked about the sorts of things that they liked to do, and were aware of the activities that were available. 3 of the residents said that they preferred to be in their own rooms rather than the lounge area and they liked to read, listen to music, complete puzzles or watch television. Healthwatch Worcestershire saw that there were some resources to support meaningful activity available in the communal lounge area. These included books, magazines, lava lamp, cuddly toys, music system, and an IPad.

Residents said they were happy at Summerdyne. On the day there was positive interactions between residents and the Activities Coordinator and care staff. Staff were busy and some residents in the lounge spent significant periods of time without much interaction with staff or being engaged in a meaningful activity.

Recommendations:

Reassure themselves that sufficient staff are available to engage residents in meaningful activity, conversation or offering people a resource to provide comfort and stimulation

Reassure themselves that sufficient meaningful activities are available when the Activities Coordinator is not available during the week and at weekends.

Consider how residents in communal areas not involved with organised activity can be engaged in meaningful activity in a way appropriate to their needs.

Consider how residents, who are able and choose to do so, could be encouraged to become more involved in the day to day running of the home.

Whether existing resources could be made more easily available for residents to choose to use them, (for example by putting them closer to residents) or appropriately introduced to individuals more frequently.

Whether additional tactile/sensory resources could be made easily available and / or appropriately introduced more frequently to residents, particularly residents living with dementia.

Whether there is potential to use more volunteers to support residents to engage in meaningful activity, either on a one to one or group basis.

Service Provider Response:

I feel it is a very fair and balanced account of the morning’s activities during your visit. I am sorry that you couldn't spend a whole day as the afternoons are less busy and you would have had a better picture as to how our home meets our resident’s needs and provides meaningful activities day to day.

The report failed to mention the lovely garden area which we use regularly in the better weather. We have several residents who cannot wait till the weather allows them to sit and socialise in our garden.

We have now appointed a second activities coordinator which will provide some extra input for our residents’ life style!

We are keen to continue to improve the care we provide, and ensure that all our residents will feel well supported in every way by listening to them and finding out as much as possible about their lifestyles and interests thus making them the centre of our home life.

We have achieved Gold Standard Framework in End of life care recently, a highly coveted award reflecting the quality of our care, which helps our home to ensure our residents have a good life to the end.