PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

At Prestige Nursing & Care we are members of, and work closely with leading professional associations, industry bodies and charities involved in ensuring people can access the right care and support at the right time – for all of life.

UNITED KINGDOM HOMECARE ASSOCIATION (UKHCA)

The UKHCA is a professional association and membership body for independent, not-for-profit and statutory home care providers in the UK. Its mission is to support its members to provide, sustainable, high-quality and responsive care services that enable people to stay in their own homes and communities.

Dominque Kent, Chief Operating Officer of Sodexo’s UK and Ireland Home Care Division (who own and operate Prestige Nursing & Care) is Chair of the UKHCA. She has worked at The Good Care Group for the past 11 years and has been the Managing Director since its acquisition in April 2019. The Good Care Group has been a fast -growing provider of live-in care services enabling older people to stay in their own homes and communities. Dominique is proud to have achieved an ‘Outstanding’ Care Quality Commission (CQC) rating in all five categories.

Dominique takes an active role with the UKHCA board in lobbying parliament and the Department of Health on challenges that affect the home care sector, including funding and specifically achieving a minimum funding price for care to drive quality in the sector. She is passionate about the coming together of health and social care, improving and evidencing outcomes, as well as improving care pathways for mental health. As part of the UKHCA board Dominique ensures best practice home care is embedded in the culture and strategy of all Sodexo’s home care businesses, including The Good Care Group, Oxford Aunts and Comfort Keepers (Ireland).

DEMENTIA UK

Dementia UK is one of the leading dementia charities in the UK and employs over 140 Admiral Nurses in communities up and down the country. These specialist dementia nurses provide expert, practical and emotional care and support for people with dementia and their family carers. As a dementia charity they help families to understand dementia, equip them with the tools and skills they need to effectively manage the condition, and offer psychological support to family carers.

Prestige Nursing & Care works closely with the charity and is has its own dedicated Admiral Nurse as part of its clinical services team. Dr Sue Jones is a registered mental health nurse and has over 20 years’ experience supporting individuals and families affected by dementia. During this time, Sue has held positions in community mental health services, healthcare research and higher education. Her doctorate focused on resilience and well-being in friends and family members who provide care and support to a person living with dementia.Sue’s role as Consultant Admiral Nurse at Prestige focuses on ensuring our services enable people with dementia to remain in their own homes, receiving person-centred care that builds their confidence, skills and promotes well-being. Sue set up a carers support group for families living with a rare dementia in 2017. This regional group is affiliated to Rare Dementia Support (RDS), a world-leading UK-based service provided by the UCL Dementia Research Centre (DRC) funded by The National Brain Appeal.

Dominque Kent, Chief Operating Officer of Sodexo’s UK and Ireland Home Care Division (who own and operate Prestige Nursing & Care) sits on the Steering Group of the Young Dementia Network, now a part of Dementia UK, supporting raising awareness and the creation of improved pathways for people with a diagnosis of dementia under the age of 65.

BILD

Bild is charity set up in 1971 for the purpose of supporting people and championing the human rights of those living with disabilities. Its aim is to develop the skills and culture necessary to better understand peoples needs and improve the quality of their life. They support people with complex needs, including its members, universities, government departments, local authorities, NHS trust, service providers to ensure best practice care and excellent support to those with disabilities.

Prestige Nursing & Care is committed to ensuring the care and support it provides to those with any disability is of the highest quality. We understand that the approach to care is as individual as the person, and our carers are trained to meet the specific needs of an individual person living with a disability. We actively promote workplace development, certification and training, and teams at Prestige complete the Bild accredited programme through MAPA. Our expert team of registered nurses include those that are registered learning disability and mental health nurses, ensuring the care we provide is well-informed, monitored and supervised, and evolves as a person’s needs change.

SPINAL INJURY ASSOCIATION (SIA)

The SIA is the leading charity in the UK supporting people and their families impacted by a spinal cord injury. The offer a pathway of support from the time of injury throughout a person’s life, not matter who the spinal injury was sustained, whether through trauma or illness. SIA is focused on helping people and to live fulfilled and independent lives. The SIA academy offers a range of training courses for health and social care professionals working in a non-specialist setting facilitated by a Spinal Court Injury Nurse Specialist.

As a member of SIA, Prestige Nursing & Care provides its carers who are supporting a person with a spinal cord injury with this specialist training to give an insight into the complex and sometimes unique issues affecting people living with this type of injury so that the most appropriate and quality care can be provided to someone in their own home.

HEADWAY

Prestige Nursing & Care is a member of Headway, the UK’s brain injury association. Headway is focused on increasing awareness and promoting understanding of brain injury, whilst supporting survivors, families and their carers to ensure they get the care they need to live fulfilled lives. It is also committed to activities and campaigns that aim to dramatically reduce the incidence of brain injury.

Headway is committed to assisting people with brain injuries to return to community living and be able to access social outlets and productive activity that means people with brain injury can live a proactive life at home with the care and support they need.

Posted 23 / June / 21

Rebuilding muscle and physical strength post lockdown

We shared some tips and advice to help mentally prepare people that have been shielding or in a small bubble throughout lockdown in the below article. here we are sharing some advice regarding physical strength as lockdown restrictions ease. ‘Shielding at home’ involved staying indoors, not having visitors, and not taking part in usual activities outside the home. This has led to people being significantly less physically active.

Older adults already have less muscle mass when compared to younger people and the inactivity imposed by lockdown can have negative consequences for health, such as becoming frailer, losing confidence with walking, and being at greater risk of serious diseases such as osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease. We also need to be outside regularly to absorb vitamin D. Vitamin D is important for our bone and muscle health and it is likely that older adults who have been shielding have had less time in the sunlight.

Regular exercise is key for bone and muscle health. Taking our clients for short strolls is a really good way to start rebuilding their muscles. For the more able, joining a local walking group can be a good way to meet new people and get some gentle exercise. Walking for health can help you find a local group https://www.walkingforhealth.org.uk/

Resistance bands are an effective way to work muscles and improve strength, they are inexpensive to buy and there are lots of ideas for gentle workouts on YouTube. The British Heart Foundation has some excellent suggestions here https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/activity/resistance-bands