As 12th May marks International Nurses Day, we thought we would take the opportunity to share the story of one of our own fantastic nurses at Edenmore. Tina, who has been a nurse at the Ilfracombe home for over 5 years describes her passions for nursing and being a member of the team at Edenmore Nursing Home.
What inspired you to take up a career in Nursing?
Sadly, my dad had dementia and he passed away a few years ago. He spent his last year living in a nursing home, often sitting in a chair with food down his top. On one occasion he fell over, and I was not informed. He had no real quality of life and this broke me because I believed that I had failed him. This experience was a major factor in inspiring me to become a nurse and it helped me seek to make changes even though they might only be by small steps.
How is Edenmore different to other care settings? Why did Evolve initially stand out to you?
For me the Edenmore model of care is outstanding! When I worked as a district nurse, I had a call-out to attend to a patient at Edenmore. Soon after I was asked if I would be interested in working for the home in Ilfracombe. This interested me and arrangements were made to show me around the home and at the time a new model of care was just being introduced. Something about this caused me to feel excitement. In the past I had always thought that I would never work in a care home setting as a nurse, but when this new model of care was described to me and I heard what changes this would bring, I jumped at the opportunity and agreed to become part of the team.
What do you do to inspire passion and motivation in your team?
I have a whacky and sometimes odd sense of humour; I enjoy making people smile. I enable, encourage, and engage with staff to help them promote their skills. I am a firm believer in empowering the team members and strongly feel that such actions are rewarded with positivity amongst the team.
What is your favourite part of the Household Model?
It feels just like being at home. It is lovely to see the people we care for living in an environment that is their home, and they are being enabled to live with as much independence as possible. Nobody is left sitting in a chair against the wall like people were in the old-style nursing/residential homes. The individuals living with us are encouraged to join in and contribute to everyone living together. The care givers take a step into the reality of the people we care for and that in itself promotes inclusion and wellbeing.
They come alive and their eyes tell a thousand stories. Each member of the team is encouraged to get to know as much as they can about who we care for by looking at their life history. The purpose of this is to facilitate genuine engagement and this in turn helps everyone to give the best possible care.
Could you describe what an average day is like at Edenmore?
Our day begins with hugs and smiles! Team members are welcomed into the home using a meet and greet method.
It is possible to hear giggles from the people we care for and team together. The kettle is put on to boil and then we commence handover. The smell of breakfast cooking wafts through the home.
The people we care for take part in occupation, like they would at home, reading newspapers, helping out with washing up, baking, organising or anything they wish to do!
It is lovely to see our ladies having beauty treatments and our gentlemen enjoying a snooze with a book on their lap. Team members can be found wearing slippers and pyjamas in the evening. One big happy family!
Beautiful, bright coloured decorations hang from the ceilings, light shows provide plenty of visual stimulation and many sensory items also help to stimulate all the senses.
Do you have any tips to keep you going throughout the day?
Be happy, smile and enjoy what you are doing and treat the home as your own!
What is your personal highlight of working at Edenmore?
Our model of care, friendship, family and support.
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