Runwood Homes launches on-person guide for its carers

Runwood Homes, a leading UK residential and dementia care provider, has recently launched a new on-person care guide to every care delivery staff member, across all 72 of its homes.

The R.E.D. Care Guide, which stands for ‘Residents Every Day’, is an innovative resource, full of supportive material for carers to promptly refer to, if and when required, and aims to support and promote safe, reliable, evidence-based care to residents every day.

In the form of a laminated A6, on-person, multipage flipchart, the R.E.D. Care Guide is now carried on shift by Runwood Homes’ 3,700+ carers, in their tunic pockets as part of their everyday uniform.

Gavin O’Hare-Connolly, Chief Operating Officer of Runwood Homes, comments, “The Guide is an easily accessible support and assists, using traffic light signal cues, to check residents’ health. For a consistent service, it provides standardised suggested next steps, highlighting when any issues require escalation. Providing our staff with this go-to guide will give them heightened confidence in decision making in their important role of caring for residents.”

Runwood Homes Care Assistant, Nicky Powell, talks about the R.E.D. Care Guide, “It’s a fantastic tool and really handy. The industry standard charts, which are tools that we refer to every day, are a great inclusion, such as The Abbey Pain Tool, Bristol Stool Chart and urine colour scale. Other prevention information included, for example, about falls, pressure sores and sepsis are also really helpful and keeps everything to look out for, front of mind, whilst still tending to residents everyday needs and wishes.”

Runwood Homes has received positive feedback from local authority and council partnerships, as well as other care industry professionals regarding the launch of The R.E.D. Care Guide. The R.E.D. Care Guide has been adapted from the NHS ‘Is my resident well?’ booklet and the ‘Carers Guide’ produced by SPACE (Safer Provision and Caring Excellence Programme) together with West Midland Patient Safety Collaborative (PSC), Walsall CCG and Wolverhampton CCG, with full support.

Photos: Runwood Homes’ Care Assistants, Nicky Powell and Marina Sandu at Elizabeth House care home in Benfleet, Essex.