Advice About Moving Into Care
Some things in life don’t happen very often. Moving home, getting married, retiring… they’re all life-changing events which can be a real challenge. Moving into care is one of those ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ events. Quite simply, the more informed you are, the better prepared you’ll be when it comes to making decisions and dealing with some of the sometimes complex issues involved. The advice given is always based on our experience in providing high quality care for more than 40 years, harmoniously interacting with our residents and their families.
- Advice for caregivers and family members
- Advice for older people looking for care or a nursing home for themselves
- Support and information for GPs, discharge nurses and other care sector professionals
Whether you are considering a move into care yourself or looking for care for a loved one, feel free to talk to us about any issues or questions you may have – no matter how complex they may seem. This is a vital part of your move towards a better life.
Advice for Caregivers
Experience shows us that many people start looking for care only when something unfortunate happens: a fall, hospitalization, problems with memory, decline in personal hygiene, as well as the loss of a husband or a wife. These are all triggers that may create a sudden and urgent need to find a safe environment quickly. We have helped many families who have faced exactly this sort of problems over the years. Very often, families find they’ve been aching to talk to each other about the issue of care for years. Younger generations usually feel awkward bringing up the topic, fearing that they may be misunderstood as trying to force their parents or parents-in-law into a home against their will. Feelings of guilt or concern may arise, that you might be seen as “abandoning” loved ones to a care home. Then, of course, there is the issue of how care will be paid for. Financial discussions can be one of the hardest parts of the conversation. Starting the conversation is the difficult part. Begin by finding a topic which enables you to bring up the subject naturally. Think carefully about whether or not you’ve noticed changes in life. These can sometimes be quite difficult to spot as they can occur slowly over time and people simply get used to them. Although this is by no means a comprehensive list, please ponder whether or not any of these observations below ring true:
- A change in eating habits, resulting in weight loss, loss of appetite or missed meals
- Lower standards of personal hygiene, such as wearing dirty clothes or body odor
- A home not as clean as it used to be
- Changes in behavior
- Changes in relationships with friends, family or neighbours
- Lower activity levels, neglecting such activities that were previously important to them
- A change in memory condition
- Poor financial management, such as not paying bills, paying bills twice or more, or unreasonably hiding money
Care Advice for Older People
For many people, the idea of moving into residential care or a nursing home is one that – quite frankly – they’d rather not think about. Apart from the dislocation involved in leaving a family home full of memories, there are all the usual stresses of moving home. One of the biggest challenges, however, is to simply acknowledge the fact that you may need care. Start by asking yourself a few straight questions:
- Has your GP carried out a recent medical assessment of your needs?
- Are you beginning to find your current home difficult to manage?
- Have you wondered about the possibility of a move to sheltered, retirement or extra care housing?
- Are you finding the stairs, bath or toilet hard to manage?
- Are your family members worried about you?
- Are you concerned about memory loss or anxious about dementia – either for yourself or your partner?
- Is it harder to get around seeing friends or family these days?
- Are you feeling lonely or neglected?
Simply making a call to Panayia Eleousa doesn’t mean that you’re committing yourself to moving into care. We talk to people every day who simply need more information before they even begin to make a decision.
Working with Care Professionals
Nursing care
You’ll find that Panayia Eleousa employs only registered nurses that are determined to make life more enjoyable. The employees here always work as a team of dedicated carers, ready to help with familiar, friendly faces and are here with the sole purpose of providing quality care 24/7.
Individual assessments
Before anyone moves to Panayia Eleousa, we assess their specific needs and get to know them as a person. On top of understanding the level of care that will be required for each individual, we find out about the person’s likes and dislikes, favourite drinks, meals, personal life stories and all those little things that help each person feel more comfortable and cared for. What we always strive for, is an individual service plan that is monitored and adjusted continuously – in consultation with the resident, their families and where appropriate, other care professionals – to ensure that the care our guests receive is tailored to their precise needs.
Dementia care
Working with our residents, we understand the need to include families in the care process, helping people to cope and live with the effects of seeing a loved one experience dementia.
Rehabilitation care
In addition to our permanent residents, Panayia Eleousa often hosts people who stay with us for shorter periods of time, whether this is after a hospitalization period, post-operative period or simply due to the needed of physiotherapy after fractured bones or stroke. Every resident benefits from the same level of care and attention to detail as our permanent residents, including a full assessment of their individual needs.
Assisted living
We’ve taken the traditional care environment and brought it completely up to date. No rules for rules’ sake. No-one telling you when you have to eat or go to bed. No strict timetable of when your friends and loved ones may visit. Just a range of high quality assisted living services that provide precisely the help and care that’s needed by each individual, whether that’s assistance with the tasks of everyday living or a level of care that requires more attention. The level of care required is constantly monitored and reassessed so that we can be sure that each of our residents continues to benefit over time.
A snapshot of Panayia Eleousa
- Leading the way in assisted living care, nursing care
- Person-centered care, individual assessments and service plans
- Expertly trained, compassionate staff
- Personalised care plans
- High quality, freshly cooked nutritious meals by our own chefs
- Landscaped gardens and beautiful interiors offering all the comforts of home
- Singles and couple suites available
- An inspiring programme of activities
