The Rowans Care Home

This month 24 Seven magazine had the opportunity to join the care workers at The Rowans residential care home in Kirk Ella. The Rowans have recently been awarded a rating of 'Good' from the CQC with no areas requiring improvement. This is a great achievement for the Rowans and they are understandably very proud of their achievement.

With all the negative press that has been in the media over the last 10 years surrounding care homes, the Rowans were keen to set the record straight and show us that not all care homes are a negative experience for the residents and in fact some are a place that residents call home and enjoy the experience of making new friends with fellow residents and care workers.

The Rowans has been an established residential care home for some years now and offer their residents numerous activities including games and exercise which are all visible on the activities board. Numerous activities take place every day which gives the residents a real choice in which activities to engage with. A church service is also available including regular visits from the local vicar. On every zone there's something available including a hairdressers and beauty parlour. In fact I was told how some family members of the residents also enjoy coming to use the facilities. Numerous Lounges are available and it was lovely to see the residents enjoying some time in the lounges and socialising with fellow residents and care workers.

I was particularly pleased to hear that the local community is also helping out. With one of the local supermarkets donating flowers to the home on a regular basis. I feel it is always a great sign when the surrounding community shows support.

I was very impressed at my visit with the Rowans team and their facilities. The team were also keen to point out that they are always making improvements and constantly focused on improving the care and experience for the residents, but for me what really struck home was the relationships that the staff and residents have developed. During my visit I regularly witnessed residents approaching the care workers and engaging in conversation. The majority of interactions were just to share a joke or a smile. This just shows me that the residents have built up strong relationships and trust with the care workers and the care workers have built strong bonds with the residents.

The Rowans are a great care home and I feel they will only go from strength to strength. During my visit I really did see what a wonderful job care workers do and I have to say the Rowans certainly do have wonderful care workers in abundance.

Article by Christopher G Willingham Mncp

Photos by David Uney

Christopher is a writer and health care professional. To book an appointment contact Christopher at christopherwillingham@rocketmail.com or Tel: 07779121743