Care provision

“We have always aimed to create an environment that feels like home"

Good organisation, structure and teamwork are just as crucial to delivering effective person-centred care as clinical expertise. This is the view of Laura Richardson-Cheater, director and owner of Richardson Care in Northampton.

Richardson Care has six specialist residential services for adults with acquired brain injury or learning disabilities and complex needs. It is a family-owned and run business and was established in 1989.

It has grown steadily over the last 34 years, but still retains its unique family and homely environment.

Holistic approach

Laura Richardson-Cheater says: “There are so many different elements to providing person-centred care and they are all underpinned by good management, structure and teamwork.

"At Richardson Care, we have a high-calibre team of specialist neuro therapists who work directly with our service users. The disciplines include occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, physiotherapy, psychiatry and psychology. The multi-disciplinary team (MDT) also includes the managers of our residential services.

"They meet on a weekly basis to review care plans and to discuss any changes, additional needs or issues that have arisen. They share their knowledge and experience to find solutions and deliver holistic care.

“We support individuals who have complex needs, so the outcome of their therapies and their well-being is influenced by many factors. For example; mood, engagement, motivation, sleep, nutrition and environment. These vary according to each individual.

"Therefore, it takes a team of people to ensure the best outcome for each service user.”

Care teams

Laura continues: “Our care and activity support workers also work in teams. There are a number of teams for each service, depending on the size of the home.

"Each team is run by a senior support worker, and this additional level of staffing allows the Homes Managers to better manage the service overall.

“In addition, we have a clinical head, who is responsible for the overall delivery of clinical care and a head of care, who is responsible for the operational side of the organisation.

Putting the service user first

"Good structure and organisation doesn’t mean that routines are imposed upon the service users. For example, they are not all required to get up at the same time, or to have breakfast at the same time, etc.

"All decisions are made in consultation with the service users. Although some of them are non-verbal, Richardson Care uses different techniques to help them communicate and always puts their views first.

“We have always aimed to create an environment that feels like home. We take a lot of care over the physical environment as well as the atmosphere with the home.

"That comes down to the people we employ, the service users we admit to each service and the culture of the organisation”, concludes Laura.

For more information call 01604 792166 or visit www.richardsoncares.co.uk