Latest News
8th Apr 2014
Settling into our Berwick Care Home
People who visit Tweed View Care Home in Berwick when they're considering care options for themselves or a close family member are understandably concerned about whether, and how quickly, they will settle in.
We've had hundreds of new residents here over almost 20 years, and amongst our long-standing staff team we have developed a thorough understanding that it's the little things that really matter. So while we deal with the bigger issues really well when a new resident joins us, we will work with you to focus on the small details too.
If we can work together to create a familiar environment that encourages our new residents to feel at home, they will quickly re-establsh themselves in their living routine, and experience all the sooner that Tweed View Care Home is a safe and happy place to be.
Moira Simpson, our Care Home Manager who has been here at Tweed View Care Home in Berwick for almost 14 years, explains "when we welcome new residents a real priority is that they see Tweed View at their home, and have every confidence that we will support them to follow their chosen lifestyle and preferred routines. We all like different things, and function in different ways, so we take time to make sure that we understand the personal preference of every resident so we can help them to enjoy as much of their usual routine as we can."
"We also encourage families to bring along personal belongings to create a real home from home in our residents' rooms. A favourite chair, pictures and family photographs, books and other personal effects, can really make a difference. We don't want people to feel as though they're living in a hotel, or somewhere impersonal or unfamiliar. If Tweed View Care Home is to become their home, their room needs to feel like their own place, and somewhere they can be safe and happy."
Moira and the care team also encourage relatives to pull together information about their family member's life, from childhood and working life to the more recent past, and to create collages of photographs and memorabilia. Again these living biographies can really help residents to settle in, and our staff love to use artefacts to explore and reminisce, as well as being able to design activities around our residents' interests and passions.
Would you like help with creating a living biography? Ask about our 'Getting to Know You' sheet that you can complete at any time to help with your own, or your relative's, settling in time at Tweed View Care Home.