3 years ago
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admin
HAPPY New Year and welcome to our first newsletter of 2023!
We’ve had a great Christmas season – probably the best for years – now the shadow of Covid has been largely lifted. Folk had a fantastic time with parties, carols, singalongs and even a staff festive jumper competition at Spring Lane (above). One of the high points was a delicious Christmas Day lunch, served by our directors so that staff could have a well-earned rest.
The success of the season was enhanced by the fact that we now have a full house of well-being coordinators. Thanks so much to Christina, Anoohya, Odile, Magda, Malwina, Emily, Steve and Pamela. Our activities programme is the envy of many other homes.
The team is led by a great new appointment in the form of Samantha Horsburgh who is our new group engagement and wellbeing manager. Samantha is busy devising a brilliant new activities programme, which will bring in a host of outside entertainers and coordinate activities between the homes. There will be more outings, too. (In the autumn Steve organised a brilliant trip of Springview folk to Westcliff-on-Sea for some fish ’n’ chips and lungfuls of sea air.)
There are other welcomes, too. Iva Petrova has joined us as manager at Springview, replacing Tamas Fazekas. Iva is also a qualified nurse, which adds to the range of skills in the home. Also joining us is Andrew Page, who takes on the new role of group catering manager.
As many of you know, in the summer we dispensed with the outside contract catering company and brought services in house. This led to a great improvement, overseen by director Stacey-Louise Balcombe. Now Andrew is taking forward the good work. Expect an even greater enhancement of our excellent dining services!
We have been making other improvements, also. After remedying a leak in the roof, the lounge at Spring Grove has been undergoing major renovation – structural and aesthetic – including redecoration, new fittings, and furniture.
Over at Springview there has been a total renovation of the third-floor bedrooms, bringing them up to a luxury standard, complete with showers. The lift refurbishment has been completed to a high standard.
Now the lift engineers are turning their attention to the lifts at Spring Lane, where other further improvements are under way. There is a complete refurbishment of the fourth-floor bedrooms and reworking of the lounge, while the entrance is to be enhanced and modernised.
Meanwhile, we’ve been checking in on the progress of Spring, your sponsored puppy who is being trained by the Medical Detection Dogs charity to sniff out illnesses, such as Covid and diabetes.
Spring has progressed very well over the past six months and is a very affectionate boy who just needs a little extra work on his recall. The trainers ask a lot of these dogs to remain undistracted in every possible circumstance, but with some further training we’re confident he’ll do well.
Spring has been increasing his public access experience, including travelling on buses and trains. It’s important for Spring and his fellow dogs to to be confident in differing surroundings, as once they are partnered with a client, they will accompany them everywhere.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11088411/Care-home-fees-rocket-20-CENT-hammer-blow-middle-class-families.html
We know how much you rate the quality of the care in our luxury homes – your testimonials demonstrate it. We hope you will continue to support us in upholding the highest standards.
He has been working very hard to perfect all the skills he has learnt so far in preparation for his final assessment. This requires the dogs to showcase their ability to perform a wide range of tasks, such as a 90-second “wait” in an exciting environment, walking to heel at varying speeds and regular direction changes.
Spring has also been tested to review how comfortable he is in different areas of public-access training, including visiting a shopping centre and using amenities such as lifts and stairs and demonstrating that he can settle comfortably and confidently in a busy environment.
The good news is that Spring passed with flying colours and will now go on to undertake more specific training before the matching process begins. Well done, Spring! If you would like to support him further, you may make a donation via Kathy Dunn, our business administrator at Springview (svadmin@springdene.co.uk).
One of the things we emphasise in our marketing is that Springdene represents the best of family values. The company is still run by the descendants of the family that founded it more than half a century ago. Indeed, Theodore Powell, grandson of founders Arnold and June Powell, has just been appointed a director, bringing a third generation into the Springdene management.
In this family environment we offer a warm and intimate approach to care of your loved ones. This is in frequent contrast to the large anonymous homes that have been springing up in London and elsewhere in recent years. Often funded by overseas corporations, they cannot compete with the personalised care that is the hallmark of Springdene.
And to confirm we are doing the right thing, we have had some marvellous recent endorsements. Helen Kogan, daughter of Philip Kogan who was resident at Spring Lane, says: “I am writing to thank you on behalf of my mother, brother and sister for the wonderful care you gave Philip during his time with you. Your staff are exceptionally caring and compassionate, and we all felt he was treated with the utmost care and kindness.”
Also on the subject of Spring Lane, Mrs Anna Markou writes: “It has been a wonderful place for my father to have his rehab. All the staff are wonderful – from the welcome at reception – from Alex to management, Zoey and Lori. He has been well cared for and has enjoyed joining in with exercises. I can highly recommend Spring Lane for your loved one to come to, for either a short or long stay. Exceptional care!”
You can rest assured we’ll be keeping up the good work in 2023. One thing we are doing is to enter for the national care home awards, whose judges will rate us, based on your comments. So, if you have positive thoughts, please share them with us by writing to our chairman Michael Williams at mwilliams@springdene.co.uk. All communications will be acknowledged.
In the meantime, may we wish you a wonderful New Year!
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4 years ago
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admin
Omicron latest
We promised that we would update you on the latest situation regarding the Omicron variant of Covid-19. As you know it is spreading widely throughout the population and it is affecting us at Springdene, too.
We have unfortunately had outbreaks among staff at all three homes, and although the infection affects only a few, it means that under Department of Health and Social Care rules we must change visiting arrangements. Thankfully, no residents have been infected so far, and we wish to keep it that way.
At Spring Lane and Springview visiting will only be available in the outside gazebos, which are heated and which we will make as comfortable as possible. At Spring Grove, sadly, this option will not be available because the architecture of the building does not allow access to the outside without passing through the building. We are sorry that visiting will not be possible here.
However, you will also be able to “visit” through the windows and to make a face-to-face call online through the tablet devices we have available.
We also know that many of you had planned to take your loved ones out over the Christmas period. Following the rules, we strongly advise you against this, so as to avoid spread to the community. We know that some of you were planning to take your relative out over Christmas, whether it was during the day, or overnight, but if they were to become symptomatic whilst in your care, they would then need to quarantine in your residence for the fourteen-day period, unless they are confirmed covid negative as we do not want the risk of knowingly bringing the virus into the home.
Please be assured that for residents staying within the homes, we promise a wonderful time. There will be fantastic activities, thanks to our devoted managers, Lori, Sony and Tamas. And a wonderful Christmas lunch with all the trimmings.
We are sorry to bring you this news over the festive period. It is as distressing for us as it is for you. We have worked very hard to keep infection out of the home and we know you will cooperate with us. If the situation changes, we promise to bring you the latest news as soon as possible.
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6 years ago
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admin
HEARTFELT thanks for all your responses to last week’s newsletter, voicing your appreciation for the heroic and incredibly tough work our staff are doing in the face of the Covid-19 crisis.
“Thank you so much for the newsletter. It means so much to me to hear how you are all getting on. You are all doing such a marvellous job,” writes Anne, Helen Joplin’s daughter. Meanwhile, Kay Thompson emails: “Thank you for keeping us all updated on life at your care homes. It must be a very stressful time for you all but I’m sure you know that what you do is so greatly appreciated by all friends and family.”
Alan and Linda Almond express a view held by many: “We wanted to reiterate how grateful we are to all you guys. The care and diligence that every one of you have displayed has been fantastic. We really do appreciate everything you are all doing.”
We’re delighted to hear that every Thursday evening you are all clapping or rattling saucepans to express your support for our hard-working carers – as well as their counterparts in the NHS. And for that, a big vote of thanks to you too!
We are also grateful for the many tributes to Vivien Frey, our much-loved activities coordinator, who died suddenly earlier this month. They include one from the distinguished actor Simon Callow who first encountered Vivien when his mother Yvonne was in Spring Grove:
‘Vivien stood out as a powerhouse of kindness and enthusiasm, never ceasing for a moment to think about what would enliven the residents’ days. I can see her now, reading out loud from the day’s newspapers, drawing the residents into discussions about world affairs, the arts, personalities of the day – everyone came alive. Vivien was a sparkling, generous, loving spirit and she’ll be terribly missed, not least by me.’
Meanwhile, the hard work at Springdene goes on in these hugely difficult times. You will have read in the press over the past week of the problems with the national supply of personal protective equipment. Well, we are pleased to say that we have been able to source our own supplies for the weeks ahead. Our staff are wearing the full PPE gear as recommended by Public Health England, and because we have adequate quantities, no corners are being cut.
Testing is proceeding apace, with more residents undergoing tests this week. However, testing for staff has not been as fast as we would like because the closest government testing station is a drive-through centre at Wembley and many of our staff do not have cars. However, the government has now offered a pilot scheme for testing at home and the first home testing kits have arrived this week.
You will know that over the past week residents continue to be asked to stay in their rooms for personal protection. We appreciate how frustrating this can be as many of us enjoy a natter with our friends or a comfy seat in the lounge. It’s made even harder in
the absence of visits by friends and relatives. But this is decided on the best medical advice for everybody’s welfare.
Rest-assured, though, that our room-bound residents are getting lots of extra attention from their carers, who make sure they never go short of company. We have a plan in place, as soon as the restrictions are lifted, to allow residents into the communal areas on a phased basis, while keeping social distancing rules. We’ll keep you posted when this happens.
Meanwhile, there are plenty of things to keep folk amused and entertained. Caroline, our activities coordinator at Spring Lane, is presenting everyone with a special pack each day.
The packs have been fun to assemble and each resident gets one tailor-made to meet their requirements. On one day, for instance, the pack contained an ‘Important events from this day in history’ article, an April poem by Laurie Lee, the joke of the day, a ‘name this vegetable’ visual quiz and an animal quiz.
This week Caroline has been taking individual residents on garden visits, with fruit plates and some April flower quizzes. Shakespeare’s birthday on April 23 saw residents working on recognising famous actors who had played a Shakespeare character and the Queens’ birthday on April 21, featured another visual quiz, ‘Name that Royal’.
The quote from the Queen that day was very apt for staff and residents alike: ‘When life seems hard, the courageous do not lie down and accept defeat; instead, they are all the more determined to struggle for a better future.’
Over at Springview, activities coordinator Eirlys has set up a ‘Pen Pal Club’, deploying members of her extended family to write letters to the residents. We hear this is going to be very popular. How nice to get a good old-fashioned letter rather than a cursory email or text! Meanwhile the Vicar of Hampstead Parish Church is arranging for his parishioners to write cards of encouragement to the residents of Spring Grove.
There was another marvellous moment when Gladys Gathergood, our oldest resident at Springview, celebrated her 107th birthday on the Queen’s birthday. Morrison’s supermarket sent her a cake and some flowers. “I was truly Queen for the day,” says a delighted Gladys.
We remain indebted to all our staff for their incredible hard work and devotion to duty during this crisis. Where staff have been self- isolating, extra carers or volunteers are being brought in and we are proud to say that no shift has been left uncovered. We have made sure everyone knows they are appreciated by offering extra sick pay.
Many of you have asked how you can help the staff in their magnificent efforts. One simple way of showing your appreciation is by sending in a treat – it only needs to be something simple like some fruit, a box of chocolates, cakes, some handcream or even a simple ‘thank you’ card.
Getting a treat is a bit like getting a hug, said one, after being presented with a ‘goody bag’ donated by a group of volunteer ladies from Highgate last week. And we all need more hugs these days…
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