Our warm, friendly atmosphere means you can continue your daily life in a safe and caring environment, where help and companionship are always on hand.
Soon after you arrive, we’ll come and talk to you about your needs and personal preferences. This will help us to put together a personal care plan just for you. We want to make sure that our care and your daily life reflect what you want and how you want to live.
We’ll ask you about things like:
your preferred routines
what you like and dislike
your interests, activities and hobbies
how you’d like us to help you on a day-to-day basis
what you like to eat and drink (and especially what you don’t like)
how well you sleep, and what time you like to get up and go to bed
any medication you’re taking
Getting to know you better is an important way of making sure the care you receive matches your interests, preferences, and needs. It is great to hear about your life history - from family and working life to interesting experiences you’ve had.
Your care team is available 24 hours a day. You’ll have your own named person, who will be responsible for providing all the care and support you need.
As soon as you’re settled in we’ll show you how to use the 24-hour call system. This lets us know if you need assistance at any time, day or night. To call for a member of our helpful staff, all you have to do is press the buzzer. The system is there for you - so please do not hesitate to use it.
By becoming more vigilant, we can all help to reduce slips, trips and falls. So, if you see an accident waiting to happen (such as loose wires or fluid spills), please alert a member of staff.
We can all do our bit by keeping floors clear of clutter, keeping furniture in its usual place, and cleaning up spills as soon as they happen. Please always alert a member of staff who will be happy to put things right.
If you have limited mobility, think about placing items you use most often within easy reach. Assistive devices, such as long-handled grasping tools, can help.
We ask our staff to wear sensible shoes at work, and we encourage you to do the same in and around the home. Sturdy, safe footwear will help you to feel sure-footed and can help to prevent falls.
If you have brought any medication or prescriptions with you, please let us know. For your health and well-being, we need to know what you’re taking.
We’ll review your medication regularly along with your Registered GP and make sure it agrees with you - because a simple change can sometimes make a big difference. We’ll also review your food and drink consumption from time to time, just to be sure you’re getting all the vitamins and nutrients you need.
Each Bloomcare home has its smoking policy. Please let us know if you smoke, and we’ll explain the policy and what sorts of facilities are available for you.
If you’d like to attend a place of worship, we can help you do this. We will often arrange for members of local religious groups to visit the home to conduct services. Members of your church or faith group are more than welcome to visit here at any time.
We’re sure you’ll agree that staying active and independent is really important to your health and happiness. Regular movement helps to maintain and build strength, overall fitness and balance. If you have any interests or hobbies, we’d love to know all about them, and we’ll do our very best to help you carry on with them here.
Our Activity Coordinators will come and introduce themselves to you over the coming days and tell you what’s on. They work with you, our staff and other organisations in the community to provide enjoyable activities every day. Some of the activities are social, such as quizzes and games, music groups, outings and trips or entertainment in the home. We also plan outdoor events like garden parties and barbecues. Other activities are more personal, such as a quiet chat, a bit of gardening or having someone read to you.
Our notice boards in the home will display a list of events for the week. We try to meet everyone’s needs, so please do give us your suggestions.
Activity records are maintained through an activity diary and in an individual programme in the resident’s care plan. The activity programme includes the following: -
Quizzes, crosswords, puzzles, cards and board games, bingo and reading, improve concentration and exercise short and long-term memory and reasoning skills.
Improve mobility, release tension and enhance relaxation.
Sing-a-longs, concerts and shows can induce relaxation and lift moods.
Contact with the environment outside of the home is important to maintain a sense of reality and foster a sense of belonging to a wider community.
Provide an opportunity for socialising with others and to mark important festivals
Our notice boards in the home will display a list of events for the week. We try to meet everyone’s needs, so please do give us your suggestions.
This is your home, and we want you to be as involved as possible in decisions about how your home is run. Your involvement can make a huge difference to you, your home and Bloomcare as a whole. We fully encourage suggestions about all aspects of the home no matter how large or small.
We use satisfaction surveys to find out about our residents’ (and your relatives’) views on the care we provide. It’s really important that we understand how you feel about our services so that we can continually improve. Our internal audit team will select a number of residents within each home, plus their relatives, and then ask about their experiences.
We encourage you to stay active and to get out and about doing all the things you like to do. If you want to go to the shops or a restaurant, or to a community group or religious service, for example, we can help to arrange transport for you. If you have mobility needs, we can arrange a wheelchair taxi. (Please note that you will need to pay for all transport.)
If you’re going out with family or friends, please let us know. In the event of an emergency at the home, it is essential for us to know at all times who is here and who is not.
We know how important it is for you and your loved ones to see each other whenever, and as often as possible, we do not have set visiting hours but do ask that visits are not at the set meal times when family and friends do visit you may choose to entertain them in your room or the communal areas, we even have the garden area as well, for you to sit in weather permitting, loved ones can also celebrate special occasions with you like birthdays or anniversaries in the communal area.
Visitors are asked to sign in electronically using the tablet that is situated at the entrance of Rakewood House and to sign out when leaving. This is a legal health and safety requirement, instruction is displayed on the tablet but should there be any difficulty in using the system please ask any member of staff for assistance.
