Care show review
be forgotten by the people wo work there, and Tim talked about occasions where he had encountered care staff shouting at each other within residents’ earshot. Care homes should, according to Tim, consider carrying out noise audits, and architects and interior designers should design for good noise levels. Soundproofing ought to be implemented, and sound absorbing curtains, flooring, and wall coverings ought to be considered. Providers should also think about silent alarms and silent nurse call systems. Tim also suggested that care homes
develop Noise Reduction Plans – setting clear goals for noise reduction, establishing quiet times, and also considering noise in residents’ care plans by looking at the impact of noise on the individuals living in the home.
A focused approach to digital With midday approaching, we made our way to the Care Keynote Stage, where a panel consisting of Nourish Care CEO Nuno Almeida, Joanna Scammell of Community Integrated Care, Mark Holmes of Kenward Trust, Becky Speight of Style Acre, and MHA’s Jason Briggs, discussed How effective use of technology and data can lead to improvements in quality of care and the creation of new models of care. Nuno kicked things off by considering what ‘going digital’ might actually mean. “Digital isn’t [just about] deploying some digital records, paying for licences, and keeping your information digital,” he said. “If that’s all you’re doing, then you’re only touching the surface. The potential for digital is really that you can deliver a type of care, and you can deliver care in different ways. And it opens the opportunity for reshaping culture, thinking about innovation in different ways, and ultimately
The importance and potential of data was a key theme at this year’s show
driving better outcomes for people.” This perspective was echoed by Joanna Scammell, who outlined the approach her organisation has taken to the implementation of digital solutions. “We started by looking at how we wanted to change the way that we work as result of having the technology in place,” she explained.
In particular, Jo highlighted the fact that implementing digital care plans had enabled “… information sharing that we could have not been able to do before.” She noted that knowledge sharing across different departments had seen a massive boost, and that Community Integrated Care’s approach to care had become far more data-led, intelligent, and proactive thanks to going digital.
A clear understanding of what you hope
to achieve by going digital is key. As Nuno elaborated: “It is now becoming really obvious that if you are doing digital, you need to have a really focused approach.” Providers should ask themselves how a
solution will support them in becoming “… a better organisation from an operational point of view,” by providing a better quality of care. “That will mean different things for different types of care,” Nuno continued, and he pointed out that, while a few years ago, providers may not have necessarily known how to best articulate their requirements and aspirations when it came to digital solutions, they were far better informed and able to do so today. When providers do get the digital solution that works best for them, the results can be transformative. As Jason Briggs of MHA put it: “The change is cultural … technology is not something we bolt onto the side of what we do. Technology is integral to what we do, and digital care plans, for us, are the ‘glue’ in the [care] home. And when you start to think about digital care plans in that way, it starts to change the way you behave, and the way staff teams behave. Everything you do starts to shift.”
Let there be light After lunch – and equipped with a welcome (if not exactly healthy) source of energy in the form of a bag of Haribo tucked into my complimentary tote bag – it was time to head back to the Design, Build & Environments Stage for a fascinating talk on Circadian lighting courtesy of Dr Steven Lockley of the Surrey Sleep Research Centre. The importance of light in care homes – of using the right kind of light at the right times and in the correct context – cannot be overstated. Of course, some of this relates to safety – of areas being well-lit and clearly signposted – but also of key importance to the wellbeing of residents in care homes are the circadian effects of
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www.thecarehomeenvironment.com November 2023
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