Quarterly Updatenews from Vincentian Home and

HospitalWinter 2019

Winter Entertainment

Wellington was reasonably mild in May lulling us all into a false sense of security. June came and boy did we notice the drop in temperature. At its coldest, Wellington reached 5C. Winter has definitely arrived and the bad weather the country has experienced since has left us with bone chilling temperatures. Fortunately the Home is lovely and warm and we have had lots of indoor activities to keep us occupied. The occasional sunny day has meant we have still managed some outings, albeit in jackets and blankets.

Spring however cannot be far away as the “Early Cheer” bulbs are just starting to bloom.

TRIBUTES

With the onset of winter we very sadly said farewell to a number of our residents. Staff were quite devastated to lose so many of our Vincentian family.

Henri had been at Vincentian since 2014. He was quite the dapper dresser and had a twinkle in his eye. Sadly Henri was on the way to turning 100 but missed out by a few months.

Joan had been with us since 2015. Joan was a very gentle lady who loved her biscuits. Always beautifully dressed and mild mannered. Joan’s family visited her every day.

Bernard joined us from the Hawkes Bay in 2016. Bernard had been a farmer and was a lovely quietly spoken man. Always happy to have a chat.

Ian was young to be at Vincentian but had chosen to live here as he knew he was going to need specialised care. Ian was an avid fisherman and right up to his passing away was still going out to sea fishing. Ian was very happy at Vincentian and always made sure staff knew how grateful he was for the care he received. He gifted money in his will to pay for the staff Christmas party this coming December.

Fifi arrived in 2018. She was a breath of fresh air, always joking with the staff and had a habit of wandering around in the middle of winter with short sleeved dresses on.

In our thoughts:

JOAN FIFI HENRI

IAN BERNARD

QUALITY CARE SERVICES

After many months of preparation the day arrived on 15 th July for our two day Ministry of Health certification Audit. Sue had been on leave since the beginning of June and left the Home in the capable hands of Lisa, our newly appointed Deputy Manager. Between Lisa and Rosie, our Quality Co-ordinator, we felt sure that everything was ready for the audit.

The day started with a tour of the Home and general checks on the condition of the Home, the equipment available, the cleanliness of the Home, and generally observing the cares being given to the residents.

The Lead Auditor, Robyn Hooper, had been here a number of years ago and was very impressed with Vincentian. She explained that she audits a lot of aged care facilities throughout New Zealand and that Vincentian was one of the nicest ones she has had to audit.

The two auditors then spent the remainder of the two days checking our policies against the standards, checking infection control and looking at the

initiatives we had introduced to cut down the amount of infections suffered by the residents, and ensure we are providing the highest quality service we can to the residents. A number of the staff were interviewed and Robyn was particularly impressed by the knowledge and understanding of our Health and Safety staff representative, Adam Estuita – well done Adam. A number of family members who were visiting over the two days also had the opportunity to discuss the cares their relatives were being given at the Home. All family members gave a positive report on the level of cares received.

Finally, at the end of the second day the Auditors sat down with Sue, Lisa Mario and Rosie to give their draft summary of the two days. Wonderful news – the auditors could find nothing that we needed to improve on, they were very happy with our provision of service and complimented us on the staff, how happy and welcoming everyone was and how compassionate all the staff are.

The audit report has now been forwarded to the Ministry of Health and it is the Ministry that will determine the length of our certification period. This can be anything from two years to four years – obviously we are hoping for the four years.

ENTERTAINMENT AND ACTIVITIES In May we all enjoyed a trip to Johnsonville Mall for lunch. A group of residents wandered the shops in the hustle and bustle and a number of purchases were made. After the shopping was completed everyone enjoyed their noodles and sweet & sour from the ‘Magic Wok

Outings also included a trip to the Home of Compassion where Francis de Sale’s Kapa Haka group gave us a rousing performance and the residents enjoyed meeting & chatting with the 9,10 and 11 year olds afterwards. It was a first visit to the old Kirkcaldie’s building, now David Jones, all enjoying the handbags, shoes, clothes, jewellery and the wall of men’s novelty socks! Finally a visit to the Arts Gallery along the waterfront where all were

impressed with the wonderful art, the bronze sculptures and Hoglin Glass, all way out of our price bracket, being thousands of dollars.

We were fortunate to have Kevin Marshall, the Chairman of Vincentian’s Board of Management come and present a slide show and talk on his Cruise from Chile, through the Falklands to the Antarctic. We loved the footage on the penguins as they deliberated a chilly swim and the wonderful vistas from their cruise ship cabin.

We have a new canine friend coming to visit - a beautiful golden retriever named Taffy - who visits with her owner Lesley. Annette still brings in Diesel the rottweiler and Sue, our manager, sometimes brings in her dog Skye. The dogs are a big hit with the residents, not so much with our cat Woody!

In June we had some great outings. Our highlight was going to Government House. We had two tour guides escorting us and telling us stories. One of our residents had made a cushion cover years ago that was used at Government House and was hoping to see it. Animates proved popular as the residents watched the dog groomer at work and were given some cake to eat while watching. A trip to the Begonia house was on a beautiful sunny day,

so we sat in the sun and then wandered through looking at all the gorgeous colours of plants in the Begonia House. Our monthly trip to the Home of Compassion saw us being entertained by a group of musicians from St Mary’s College.

July saw a group go for a three course birthday lunch at the Whitby Restaurant, James Cook. A cheese board followed the lunch and a good time was had by all. One beautiful sunny day we walked around Oriental Bay, chatting with dog owners and patting dogs and taking in all the posh houses.

In July the residents were treated to the ICPE Concert: These Catholic Mission students from St Gerard’s from all over the world, sang & performed to a delighted audience. They spent time over morning tea with residents chatting, and praying afterwards. We were also entertained by the Goodtime Gang: The 3 players had wonderful skits and songs interacting with the audience, producing a great comedy show of fun and laughs.

One of our residents, Frances, was keen for us to see a video on Pitcairn Island and to tell us about the Island and its inhabitants, a place she visited in the 1980s. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the presentation.

As well as all the entertainment, the residents’ have been very busy colouring over the past couple of months and the results of their work are on the walls brightening the place up. They also made an enormous Get Well card for our nurse Lucila who had an accident overseas and is incapacitated.

FAREWELL

In July we learned that our beloved cook, Gracie, had decided to leave Vincentian. This was a shock to the residents who have been so appreciative of the wonderful meals she has prepared and her kind and gentle nature. Gracie sent a message to everyone saying that it had been an awesome and worthwhile experience working in a small rest home such as Vincentian. She went on to say that she had given and gained so much in return and for that she was most grateful to the Vincentian family. She wishes everyone a bright and happy future and we wish her the same. In the meanwhile Shane, our second cook, will work fulltime until a replacement for Gracie is found.

SUE’S HOLIDAY

I managed to grab a period of much needed annual leave prior to our audit and in early June left for a month visiting Scotland, the Outer Hebrides and the Yorkshire Dales. While in Yorkshire I met up with my only remaining aunt who I hadn’t seen for over 20 years! Despite it being early summer in the UK the weather on the Scottish islands was very wet and extremely cold. Despite that my partner Paul and I had a wonderful time. We had hired a car in

Edinburgh and then driven to the Isle of Skye before taking the ferry and island hopping through the Outer Hebrides. What fascinating islands these are, steeped in history, so very isolated but also so very beautiful. The same could be said for the Yorkshire Dales where we loved all the tiny decorated villages. My Aunt volunteers for the Border Collie Rescue Trust and we were fortunate to be able to visit and meet with the dogs and to see all the wonderful work that is carried out there. All too soon it seemed the holiday was over but we certainly have plans to return in the not too distant future.