Activities at Ouse View Care Home

Love was in the air at Ouse View celebrated St Valentine’s Day.  The home was filled with flowers, cards and sweets and residents celebrated the day of love by creating heart shaped decorations to decorate the home and baking heart shaped shortbread biscuits for all to enjoy.

General Manager, Pauline Hodgson said: “It’s been a very different Valentine’s Day but we’ve all had a lovely day nonetheless. Lots of our residents were able to see their loved ones either using our visiting suite or on a video call. We’ve had a whole range of treats and Valentine’s themed fun and we have enjoyed every moment of it!”

Staff and residents at Ouse View welcomed in the Year of the Ox with a day of celebrations and activities.

Inspired by Chinese culture and traditions, the home was decorated with hanging lanterns. Residents learnt all about the traditions and superstitions of Chinese New Year.  The homes hospitality team cooked up an oriental feast for lunch and residents enjoyed the delicious food washed down with pots of Chinese tea.

Pauline Hodgson,  General Manager said: “We have had a brilliant day, the home looks absolutely wonderful decorated all in red and we all had such fun finding out what animal we are, the associated traits and reading each other’s horoscopes.  The residents loved watching videos of traditional lion and dragon dances too.

Friday afternoon is movie matinee time at Ouse View, and today the home’s very own Nickelodeon screened Agatha Christie’s 1964 “Murder Ahoy”, starring Dame Margaret Rutherford. Residents queued patiently, but excitedly, as Care Assistants Helen Woolford and Kath Calpin did a fantastic job as usherettes, issuing tickets, showing patrons to their seats, and offering concessions during the intermission. Of course, we could just pop a DVD in the player, but where’s the fun in that? It’s all about the experience.

Residents today enjoyed a relaxing and pampering manicure session courtesy of Ouse View staff to help them feel even more beautiful. The manicures included hand massages, exfoliation, cuticle treatment, buffing, and an application of nail polish.

Manicures were available, if required, for the gentlemen as well as the ladies, and were provided with tea, coffee and cake. As the saying goes, "There’s nothing a fresh manicure can’t fix!"

After much anticipation, residents and staff at Ouse View received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine on Saturday 9 January. The morning was abuzz with excitement at the home, as Jorvik Gillygate Practice's Dr Ben Shorten, and nurse practitioner, Angela Goldsmith administered the first of what will be two vaccinations, with the second following at a later date.

Everyone’s spirits were lifted after what has been a very challenging year for all, and this is very much seen as the first step in getting things back to normal. As General Manager, Pauline Hodgson said, "The vaccine feels like the light at the end of the tunnel." Pictured are staff and residents enjoying a bit of post-vaccination light relief.

To help celebrate International Flower Day, residents prepared some beautiful tulips from Amsterdam for each of their rooms. Flowers are a welcome addition at this time of year, and are a lovely way to bring a sensory experience into activities within the home.