Activities at South Grange Care Home

Residents and staff at South Grange Care Home in Monifieth celebrated all things Irish for St Patrick’s Day this week. The home was decorated with shamrocks and staff and residents became leprechauns for the day.

Held on March 17th, Saint Patrick's Day actually observes the death of St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, but the day has come to be a huge celebration of Irish heritage and culture.

Staff and residents at the home marked the day by taking part in an Irish Quiz and dancing and singing the afternoon away to a virtual Irish concert by our local entertainers Kirsten and John. Chef, Callum Munroe prepared a fantastic Irish lunch of Irish stew, colcannon and soda bread all washed down with Guinness or an Irish whiskey.

For residents at South Grange care home in Monifieth, the long awaited reunion with two family members has become a reality, as two named visitors are now allowed to visit each resident in their bedroom.  Family members must visit separately, at different times.

There has been much anticipation of this moment by families and residents alike.  Guidance was issued by the Scottish Government at the end of February and Barchester Healthcare, who run South Grange care home, is proceeding with a safe and cautious approach to visiting. Strict protocols are in place with all visitors required to have a negative Lateral Flow Device test result before being allowed into the home, and infection control measures and social distancing in place for every visit.

Despite the need for testing and social distancing, it was still welcome news for so many residents and their family members to be able to meet in the comfort of their bedroom. Residents and their families/friends enjoyed getting together and catching up face to face.

Lorna Megaw, Senior Care Assistant recently received a prestigious award for 20-years long service at the home.  Lorna was over the moon to receive her award which was presented to her by colleague, Val McNally, Senior Staff Nurse who has worked alongside her for many years. Staff and residents all gathered socially distanced to share Lorna’s special day.  Congratulations Lorna!

Staff and residents at Barchester’s South Grange care home had a fantastic time celebrating Real Bread Week, surely one of the best weeks of the year!

Over the course of the week, overseen by Chef Vicky, staff and residents have kneaded, proven and baked a selection of different breads from granary loaves and floury batches, breadsticks and pretzels, croissants and pain au chocolat, to brioche, sourdough, ciabatta and focaccia. All different types of breads were attempted, some more successful than others, but all were a great source of fun and anticipation to see the outcome of their collective baking efforts.

General Manager, Fiona Torrie, said: “It wasn’t just the residents that were excited when we found out there was a Real Bread Week, the eyes of the staff lit up too! Who doesn’t love freshly baked bread?  We have all had a great time trying out new recipes and adding different flavours and ingredients, we’ll be applying for Bake Off next!”

The homes hospitality team and residents were very busy on Pancake Day making over 70 pancakes for all of us to enjoy.  Everyone was able to choose from a selection of mouth-watering toppings from the traditional lemon and sugar to jam and cream, but the favourite was chocolate spread, banana and cream!  The pancakes were delicious.  What is your favourite topping?

South Grange celebrated the Chinese ‘Year of the Ox’, with residents enjoying a delicious three course Chinese themed lunch cooked by chef, Vicky. Residents were very keen to read their horoscopes and which animal sign they were relating to the year in which they were born. The residents loved watching videos of traditional lion and dragon dances loving the vibrant colours of the costumes. It was a fun-filled day for all.