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Recent events
April was a busy month with lots going on for our residents.
We had Tina from High Kicks and Heels on 2nd April. She was her usual entertaining self, engaging our residents in a good old sing- along and dance.
On 3rd April we welcomed Bisley Rainbows to the home, they brought us ‘Pots of kindness’ which were some hand- painted plant pots containing colorful flowers. They brought them to Elmfield as a gift for us to earn their ‘kindness in the community’ badge.
Residents were very pleased and overwhelmed to receive these thoughtful plants. They definitely brighten up our garden.
We had our first visit from the visiting library on 4th April. Two volunteers and one librarian very kindly came to Elmfield and set up a display of age appropriate and large print books which our residents were able to browse through and choose which they would like to loan.
For our next visit on 17th May, they will also bring audio books for people who prefer stories to be read out loud.
We have continued with our fortnightly pub lunches which are as popular as ever. Sometimes we have 10-13 residents wishing to go out for lunch which is great!
Jasmine from G-fitness came on 8th April to do her hour of fitness with our residents. She was very engaging and our residents all joined in with the differing chair- based exercises that she conducted.
She brought stretchy elastic bands, sponge balls and adapted the general exercise for all abilities. Jasmine will be coming back every month.
The lovely ladies from Bisley Church conducted a special Easter service in April which was very significant as Easter is the most celebrated day of the Christian calendar. The service was attended by many of our residents who practice their religious faith.
Towards the end of April, we welcomed our next year group of school children from Bisley School. We have the older children coming to Elmfield on Wednesday afternoons. This is a larger group of children doing their ‘Learning beyond the classroom’ project. The school children visiting us is the highlight of the week for many of our residents. They adore seeing children and they always bring a smile to everyone’s face.
We are pleased to announce that Bailey our Pets As Therapy dog, is back with us! Bailey and his owner Caroline have re-commenced their fortnightly visits on a Friday morning. We have missed him and it was lovely to see how many residents remembered Bailey and Caroline.
We were very lucky to have our annual hatching of baby chicks! We had the eggs for longer than the usual 2-3 days before hatching and residents lost interest in them for a while until the first signs of hatching were evident. A large group of residents gathered to watch our first chick hatch.
We were extremely lucky to have 11 baby chicks hatch. They were an unusual breed of chicks with some beautiful markings and colors.
The baby chicks hatched over the Easter weekend from Good Friday until Easter Sunday.
All of our residents had pleasure in holding and cuddling the little chicks. We had the chicks until the following Thursday when their owners collected them to go back to the farm. It is amazing how quickly they grow!
Residents are already looking to our next hatchings in Spring 2020……
We had our Easter Party on Easter Monday with an excellent entertainer called Anita, who sang a varied melody of songs from different eras. She was a vibrant and engaging singer and we had a great afternoon.
Dawn provided a lovely spread on the buffet for after the show and the leftovers were enjoyed at supper time.
Upcoming events:
We are excited to announce that at the end of May the annual ‘Teas on the Rec’ will begin again. We are looking forward to our Thursday afternoons over on the green eating delicious homemade cake and tea/ coffee.
Dementia Action Week is happening in May. We will be organizing some charity events to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society.
Staff and resident changes:
We are having a recruitment drive at the moment looking for new staff to join our team and expand job roles.
We are looking for an activities coordinator to organize and conduct activities several times a week.
We have welcomed Dave Ceesay to our team, he is in the army but has joined us as a bank care assistant to expand his knowledge and skills before hoping to commence nursing through the military.
We also welcome Nana Bonsu to Elmfield who has also joined us as a bank care assistant. Nana has experience working with the elderly.
We are awaiting security checks for several other new members of staff who will hopefully start working with us in May.
We have had Phyllis Marskell with us in April for a month’s respite. She will be going back home early May after her stay with us.
Birthdays:
We had no birthday to celebrate in April.
Other news:
During May, Niccii will be holding care plan review meetings with residents and relatives to discuss our resident’s needs, their wishes, preferences and to gain feedback about the service we provide. Thank- you to those who have already arranged dates and times for these review meetings.
Our new menu will be revealed on the second week of May. We look forward to having a taster day to sample the new meals added to the menu chosen by YOU our residents!
Key workers have recently completed food questionnaires with our residents to identify their preferences, likes, dislikes and to get suggestions from everyone.
The menu will continue to be a four- week menu and the most popular meals will be on the menu more frequently. We will continue with three vegetables a day, fish twice a week and varied meats other days. We also have a vegetarian menu and soft diet menu which will both also be reviewed.
We are currently developing and finalizing ideas/ suggestions for Dementia Action Week in May. Everyone will be informed of the details as soon as they are confirmed.
The Alzheimer’s charity is something close to the hearts of many staff and relatives at Elmfield as many of us have experienced first- hand the cruelty of this illness and how it affects the individual but also loved ones and carer’s.
Employee of the month:
Employee of the month for April has been awarded to Aga Rahaman. Aga is employed as a laundry assistant. Aga is consistently an excellent team worker and will always help other staff from other job roles. She is always obliging to help the residents when they require assistance. Aga was a big help with preparations for the Easter Party. Well done Aga and keep up the great work!