Introduction to Elder Homes

Elder Homes is an independent family run organisation with two care home facilities in Edinburgh able to support 90 residents. They believe the attentive and experienced staff of 180 make the biggest difference to their residents' quality of life. All Elder Homes' staff are direct employees, including the domestics, catering and maintenance teams. No agency staff are used to ensure maximum continuity of care and to help their residents retain their dignity and continue to enjoy this next phase of their life. Every member of the team is valued equally and contributes to the exceptional level of care - it's a team effort.

Individualized care is an integral part of the service provided at Elder Homes, from the initial visit to the home and pre-admission assessment, through to end of life care. This includes as much choice as possible in all areas from both the resident and their loved ones if the resident is unable to communicate their preferences, including preferences in diet, music, environment and personal care.

There is a very comprehensive non-nursing input to the homes, including onsite physiotherapy and a varied social and leisure program. This incorporates community events, individual visits, group activities, resident committees to help influence areas such as meals and outings.

Staff training is an area Elder Homes feel is vital to a more positive care experience for their residents and provides support for their staff. This training is varied and includes many staff being trained to teach as this can ensure specific issues within the home can be supported. Training includes areas such as Health and Safety, Moving and Handling and other mandatory areas, however there is an increased input in the area of dementia as a greater percentage of residents are admitted with, or are developing dementia once in the home.

The following questions were put to Cheryl Henderson, Education Officer at Elder Homes:

What was your identified training need?

‘As a small, independent family run organisation providing nursing care to older people, we had become aware of an increase in challenging behaviour and wanted to ensure we could manage this in the best way possible. We support residents both with and without dementia and have a diverse team supporting them. We felt that we would be able to offer better support and understanding to those in our care and our staff if we were able to offer a comprehensive training in this area.’

Why did you choose NAPPI?

‘NAPPI was mentioned as one of the companies offering this training by a staff member who had attended a NAPPI training session some years previously. All the companies we looked at appeared to offer a similar product on paper, but the personal input of NAPPI and their positive ethos showed them to be our preferred choice. Once we investigated further, the package offered was more supportive and comprehensive than others and was able to be adapted for our needs.’

What difference has NAPPI made?

‘NAPPI training has ensured that all of our staff have a much more detailed knowledge of why people may react a certain way and has kept them safer and more confident within difficult situations. It has highlighted to staff how important non-verbal communication is and has ensured they are aware of the importance of knowing each person and treating them individually. Although there are elements of physical protection within the NAPPI training, it is the psychological elements that the greatest majority of staff report to using and being aware of the most.’

Mission Statement from Elder Homes:

At Elder Homes we are committed to the provision of a comprehensive and high quality care service to older people. Our Mission statement, drawn together by a group within the organisation, it highlights that we strive to provide a level of excellence in care that:

Click here to visit the Elder Homes website.