Activities at Waterside Court Care Home

Waterside Court is a brand new and luxurious 70 bedded care home in Wallingford. As a new and purpose-built care home, we have a plethora of resources and equipment available to improve and enhance the lives of our residents.

One of these resources is a robotic animal, most typically a cat or a dog. These furry companions have realistic fur and pet-like sounds that are designed to bring comfort and companionship, particularly for those living with dementia. These robotic animals also have in-built sensors that respond to petting and movements, which adds to the interaction.

Whilst on a tour of the home with Victoria Nemar (Home Services Advisor), Eve Evans (Chair of Cholsey Day Centre) noticed the robotic dog in the Activity Café. Once Victoria explained the benefits behind robotic animals and how they are used in care homes, Eve purchased one for her mother, who lives with Dementia, as a Mother’s Day gift. Eve commented: “I am so glad I saw this dog. She has talked to her non-stop. Janet (the dog’s name) is her new friend. Mum even forgot about her brandy which is the most important part of her evening!”

Interaction and stimulation for people living with dementia is incredibly important to maintaining wellbeing. In addition to robotic animals, Waterside Court also has therapy dolls and a Magic Table.

Roxana Moldovan (General Manager) and Victoria Nemar (HSA) met with key contacts from local GP Surgery, Wallingford Medical Practice.

GP Practice Manager Deb Perry and Reception Manager Kim Wise were shown around our stunning new home. We had a lovely time showcasing our purpose-built care home and discussing how such an environment can benefit residents’ wellbeing and independence.

It was also fantastic to be able to discuss how Waterside Court and Wallingford Medical Practice can work together once the home opens to its first residents. Having a clear line of communication and good relationship with the local GP is pivotal to ensuring the health and wellbeing of residents is maintained to a high standard. Deb and Kim were eager to create as smooth a process as possible and the team enjoyed putting this in place. We can’t wait to open our doors to residents soon!

Waterside Court were proud to have met with Tracey from the Care Home Support Service (CHSS). The CHSS is a multidisciplinary team which consists of specialist nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, healthcare assistants in addition to mental health occupational therapists/nurses. The CHSS team work in partnership with care home staff in all care homes.

Roxana Moldovan, General Manager of Waterside Court, said “It’s very important to have these connections in place before the home officially opens to residents. We had a lovely time showing Tracey our wonderful, purpose-built home and we discussed how we can work effectively together going forwards. These relationships are key to ensuring that a good quality of life is maintained for our residents and we can’t wait to welcome our news residents on 29th March, knowing we have these important connections in place.”

The team at Waterside Court in Wallingford marked International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8th by spending the day celebrating the achievements of wonderful trail-blazing women throughout history.

IWD takes place on March 8 every year to celebrate women’s rights and inspire people to fight for gender equality.  A United Nations-sanctioned global holiday, IWD celebrates women’s contributions to society, raises awareness about the fight for gender parity and inspires support for organisations that support women globally.

Activity Coordinator, May Kidner, created a vibrant purple board to celebrate IWD. The board contained inspirational quotes from notable women, along with key messages about what it means to be a woman. The team at Waterside Court also asked its future residents and families to contribute to the board by sending in information and stories about the important women in their own lives.

Roxana Moldovan, General Manager at Waterside Court said: “We’ve all had a really interesting day thinking about the very many amazing women who have had such an impact on our lives, whether that was an historic figure or people in our own family.  It was good to share our experiences, take stock and reflect on how much society has changed over the years. It has also been a lovely way of getting our future residents involved with activities at Waterside Court. We look forward to welcoming them in very soon.”

Roxana Moldovan (General Manager) and Victoria Nemar (HSA) enjoyed spending time on a zoom meeting, talking to a local District Nurse in Wallingford. District Nurses are a huge part of the support network for residential care homes. If residents need occasional injections, assessments for mobility aids or overall health assessments, it is paramount that our team can work closely with District Nurses to deliver the best and most efficient level of care.

In the meeting, both parties agreed that it would be beneficial to keep an ongoing and open communication between Waterside Court and Oxford Health. We have therefore agreed to conduct monthly zoom meetings to update each other with existing and prospective residents’ needs and requirements. We are also pleased to say that the District Nurses will be forming part of our pre-admission assessment process for residents who may need visits from them; this involvement is valuable to residents’ wellbeing because it ensures that District Nurses are aware of the needs before admission and can plan accordingly to meet needs effectively. It also offers them with an opportunity to feedback to the team at Waterside Court and guide us if necessary.

We are looking forward to our next call in March and can’t wait to develop this relationship further moving forward.

Roxana Moldovan (General Manager) and Victoria Nemar (HSA) were thrilled to have met with representatives from Cholsey Volunteers, Cholsey Day Centre and COPA (Cholsey's Older Person's Activities).

These local groups have been pivotal to helping the vulnerable and elderly in the local community during this very challenging year. Cholsey Volunteers is a group that was set up to offer support to those in need of it during the first lockdown. Together, with the Day Centre, COPA, the Parish Council and St Mary’s Church, they provide services to the elderly and vulnerable, including delivering food bags, phone support, sending activity packs, medication runs and much more.

Waterside Court welcomed the group so we could identify ways that we could all work together going forwards, with the aim of enhancing the support provided within the local community. This includes baking cakes to help fill food bags and, once lockdown restrictions ease, lending Waterside Court’s accessible minibus to the groups for their service users. We also discussed working together to enhance activities for older people at Waterside Court and in the local community.

Another way that we are all eager to work together is through Dementia Friendly Community initiatives. Waterside Court has been embarking on a campaign to make Wallingford and its surrounding towns and villages Dementia Friendly. COPA have received a grant towards making their community Dementia Friendly and Victoria was thrilled to be invited to help them achieve this goal by running Dementia Friends information sessions.

Community connections like this are hugely beneficial to our residents, but they also have a wider impact in the local community. We are always happy and willing to support local clubs, groups and organisations where we can and we are really looking forward to working with these fantastic groups in Cholsey going forwards.