“Make sure you know what you want to do, and be determined to do it” – older women share their wisdom. To celebrate International Women’s Day on Friday 8th March, 12 female care home residents across the UK have been sharing the advice they’d give to their younger selves.

The ladies, aged between 82 and 93, also shared what they think young women today should know.

The advice overwhelmingly focuses on being yourself and enjoying life to the full, with most women advising to trust yourself and strive for your dreams. Margaret Crowther, 91, said: “Make sure you know what you want to do, and be determined to do it”.

Care homes getting worse in one in three local councils – urgent action needed to end inadequate standards of care, says older people’s charity

The quality of care homes has worsened in the last year in more than a third of local authorities (37%) Independent Age has found.

With over 2.6 million over-65s living in areas where an increasing number of care homes are rated ‘inadequate’ or ‘requires improvement’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) many older people and their families have no choice but to choose a poorly-performing care home. 

Hand crafted walking frame bags have given care home residents more freedom to get about carrying their “essentials”.

A knitting group from Thornaby Methodist Church, near Middlesbrough, created the bags for residents at Mandale House Care Home.

One of those residents, Mavis Thomas, has been a member of the church and friends with the knitting group organiser, Shirley Whitfield, for over 50 years.

Shirley established Chat and Craft to help members work through their grief after their husbands passed away.

A FORMER care assistant has risen through the ranks at a Teesside care home,The Beeches Care Home, to be named home manager.

Jessica Brown joined The Beeches Care Home, on Green Lane, Newtown, in 2014 and was promoted to senior care assistant before becoming deputy manager in 2018.

She became home manager in February 2019 and has said she is aiming to lead the home to the highest rating from industry watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

She said: “I truly believe that everyone is unique and should be treated in a person-centred way, with activities and services tailored to each person’s individual preferences. "

Borough Care, the largest not-for-profit provider of care for older people in Stockport, has appointed Lee Omar to its Board of Directors.  In his new position as a Non-Executive Director, Lee Omar will support Borough Care’s Executive Team at a strategic level and also engage with residents, their families and staff, to provide invaluable feedback to the leadership team.  Lee’s role will include developing relationships with external stakeholders, to help Borough Care innovate and remain commercial focussed.    

Commenting on what attracted him to becoming a Board member at Borough Care, Lee Omar says: “Having been a Non-Executive Director for NHS Trusts, I was interested to work in social care as I believe one of the great challenges we face is how we meet the requirements of our ageing society.  We are living longer lives and I want to be part of the change that sees us offering aspirational products and services for this ageing population.”

NATIONAL Carrot Cake Day has been helping Derbyshire care home residents living with dementia.

Residents at Springbank House Care Home, on Ashgate Road, in Chesterfield, have been recalling their baking skills to mark the national day.

They helped make and decorate buns and cakes before they were served during afternoon tea.

Using their baking skills has proven beneficial for those with dementia, according to home manager Karen Busby.

FAMILIES, friends and VIPs turned out for an inaugural coffee morning at a Peterlee care home. 

The Town Mayor Councillor Scott Meikle, Deputy Mayor Councillor Terry Duffy and Councillor Gordon Carne were among the guests at the first Bannatyne Lodge Care Home community coffee morning.

They were joined by staff, residents and visitors for hot drinks, cakes and a chat.

There was also a tombola to raise money for the residents’ fund, which contributes towards activities and outings for those living at the home.

The youngsters, all aged two to four years, showed residents how to build sandcastles and make pizzas out of playdough, broccoli, asparagus and red lentils.

They also played with toys in the pond and painted on a clingfilm canvas using brushes and their hands.

Resident Shirley Naylor, 84, said: “I loved having little Heidi on my knee dancing away.”

Margaret Salmon, 93, said: “It was lovely. It really brightened my day.”

Bluebird Care Gosport, a home-care provider in the Hampshire area is embarking on an ambitious, and possibly life changing campaign, to try and bring about an end to loneliness. Unite Against Loneliness will be ongoing throughout 2019; the Bluebird Care Gosport team will be running a yearlong campaign to raise awareness of, and ultimately, try to eradicate loneliness within the local community and beyond.

The aim of the campaign is split into two objectives; the first is to raise awareness of the overwhelming issues of loneliness among the elderly and vulnerable. The second, is to show everyone how easy it is to support people who may be isolated and lonely, by encouraging them to be more socially inclusive and focused on community outreach. Small actions go a really long way.

Registered nurse Sara Muslin has joined the team at Great Oaks in Bournemouth as care home manager.

Sara has been a registered nurse for more than 30 years and has vast experience in the care sector, having managed care teams for over 20 years. Sara has spent the past six years as a registered manager for care homes which specialise in nursing, residential and dementia care.

In her new role, Sara is responsible for all aspects of the day-to-day running of the home, ensuring that the highest standards of care are maintained and that the Care Quality Commission standards and guidelines are adhered to at all times.

Former church band member Keith Keenan has been gifted a guitar to continue playing in his care home in Skelmersdale.

Keith, who lives at Aaron Crest Care Home, on Tanhouse Road, was given the instrument by Rev Dr Anne Kazich.

The community priest in the parish of St. Paul’s has been visiting the home on a regular basis to lead monthly singing sessions with the residents.

She learned Keith used to play guitar in a church band, so decided to find someone willing to donate a guitar to get him strumming again.

Bluebird Care Gosport, a home-care provider in the Hampshire area is embarking on an ambitious, and possibly life changing campaign, to try and bring about an end to loneliness. Unite Against Loneliness will be ongoing throughout 2019; the Bluebird Care Gosport team will be running a yearlong campaign to raise awareness of, and ultimately, try to eradicate loneliness within the local community and beyond.

The aim of the campaign is split into two objectives; the first is to raise awareness of the overwhelming issues of loneliness among the elderly and vulnerable. The second, is to show everyone how easy it is to support people who may be isolated and lonely, by encouraging them to be more socially inclusive and focused on community outreach. Small actions go a really long way.

The campaign is in partnership with The Silver Line, the only confidential, free helpline for older people across the UK. The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is open to anyone who is feeling lonely or isolated.  

At a time of the year when the focus is to improve our health and well-being, Bethel House is taking a unique approach to keeping fit; with Bubble Yoga sessions.

Lisa Davies is a ‘Bubbleologist’ and sensory Yoga instructor who hosted the one-hour session to inspire the 23 residents at the Beach Avenue residential care home.

The welcoming and comfortable Barton on Sea Care Home is proudly led by a fully-trained and caring team. The aim is dedicated to using new techniques as a social experience to engage and stimulate residents, some who live with dementia.

The Oaks Care Home cook has been sharing her experience of cervical cancer as part of a national awareness raising week.

Yvonne Gibson, who works at The Oaks Care Home, in Blyth, Northumberland, was diagnosed with Stage 4 cervical cancer five months ago.

Despite being on long-term sick leave, she decided to visit work to talk to the staff about the importance of going for cervical screening.

Her talk coincided with Cervical Cancer Prevention Week 2019, promoted by Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust to educate others on reducing their risk of the disease.

Patients are worried about confidentiality and, particularly, that healthcare providers might not be doing enough to protect their data. And so, many new and updated regulations, such as the GDPR, have been put into place this past year to ensure data is managed to the highest standards.

Why is everyone so worried? With “downright dangerous” fax machines still in regular use despite a recent ban on new acquisitions, as well as massive losses of paper files being revealed across the healthcare sector, it's no wonder. In a bid to alleviate confidentiality issues and data breaches, the healthcare sector has set a target to go paperless by 2020. With that, there are many reasons behind such a fast-paced push for the removal of paper from the sector.