Best Practice In Care Homes: Definitive Guide Launched, UK

Main Category: Caregivers / Homecare
Also Included In: Seniors / Aging
Article Date: 05 Jun 2008 - 4:00 PDT

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My Home Life, a programme that works to ensure care home practice is underpinned by robust evidence on what contributes toward quality of life for older people, has published 'Best practice in care homes - what is the evidence?', a special bulletin summarising the best practice guidance for achieving quality of life for people living, dying, visiting and working in care homes for older people.* The publication coincides with National Care Homes Week, running from June 2 - 6.

My Home Life is a ground-breaking project led by Help the Aged, in partnership with the National Care Forum and City University. It is a collaborative programme bringing together organisations which reflect the interests of older people, care home providers, commissioners, and regulators.

The relationship-centred, evidence-based vision behind My Home Life is now endorsed by all the major care home representative organisations in the UK. **

Executive Director of My Home Life, Professor Julienne Meyer, said: 'While there is already lots of evidence of good practice within care homes, some staff and managers feel undervalued and overburdened by regulation and struggle to respond to the needs and wishes of increasingly frail residents. Add to this a continual stream of negative media stories, limited resources and little support from the wider health and social care system; improving quality of life within care homes can be an uphill struggle.

'With this special bulletin, the My Home Life programme hopes to kick-start a new drive to improve quality of life in care homes, celebrate existing best practice in the sector, and promote care homes as a positive option for older people.

'Ivan Lewis has called for care homes to unite and speak with one voice. Today, we have. My Home Life has already received support from MPs - 75 of whom have signed an early day motion supporting the programme. In addition to this, Help the Aged in Wales has received funding from the Welsh Assembly Government through Health Challenge Wales for a My Home Life Champion in Wales. The Independent Health and Care Providers in Northern Ireland are seeking a similar post there. Moreover, Scotland's Care Commission has announced its intention to link their new quality framework to the vision underpinning My Home Life.

'My Home Life hopes that England's new Care Quality Commission will heed the findings of our review of the best practice out there, recognising what adds up to quality of life in care homes and help to promote it across the sector.'

Notes

* Best practice in care homes - what is the evidence' is being produced in conjunction with Caring Business magazine. To find out more information on the magazine, and to view a copy of the special bulletin please go to: http://www.caringbusiness.co.uk/home

** More information on My Home Life can be found a: http://www.myhomelife.org.uk.

Organisations including: The Relatives and Residents Association, the National Care Forum and the English Community Care Association have all endorsed My Home Life's vision.

Help the Aged is the charity fighting to free disadvantaged older people in the UK and overseas from poverty, isolation, neglect and ageism. It campaigns to raise public awareness of the issues affecting older people and to bring about policy change. The Charity delivers a range of services: information and advice, home support and community living, including international development work. These are supported by its paid-for services and fundraising activities - which aim to increase funding in the future to respond to the growing unmet needs of disadvantaged older people. Help the Aged also funds vital research into the health issues and experiences of older people to improve the quality of later life.

Help the Aged urgently needs donations and support to help it in the increasingly challenging fight to free disadvantaged older people from poverty, isolation and neglect.

http://www.helptheaged.org.uk