Winter is now upon us and while this season might bring festivities and fun, it can also present many problems for care providers and clients.
Especially when the weather is so dynamic and challenging. This is why we feel it is important to talk about how we ensure our clients can stay safe during winter.
If conditions become serious, then many businesses may decide to shut, rather than have their employees venture out into the harsh conditions, but this is not always possible for home care providers.
As such, our expert team has created a short guide on how we keep our service running throughout the winter, based on our best practices and procedures, allowing us to always keep our clients at the forefront of our minds, regardless of the circumstances.
How we ensure our clients can stay safe:
1. Emergency Care Plans
Every company should have a comprehensive emergency plan, and there should be full training for each employee to ensure that they know what the plan entails, and what their role should be. Our plans are considered and revised before each winter, to ensure that everything written in the plans is still applicable and actionable.
2. Review All Care Plans
We also have a plan which encompasses the care of our clients. Within this, we identify the most vulnerable clients, secure alternate resources and staff availability, and ensure we have all family contact details. Additionally, we make sure that we are ready to revise rotas if necessary.
3. Ensure Clients Are Fully Stocked Up
If the worst came to the worst and we were delayed in visiting a client, then we ensure that they have access to essential supplies. This means making sure these clients have easily accessible food, a stockpile of any required medication, blankets and warm clothes, as well as things to keep themselves entertained, such as books or a television.
4. Consider Transport Issues
As a car is the easiest way to visit all of our clients, it is vital that our vehicles are fully maintained and have the equipment necessary to travel in adverse conditions. As well as insisting our care providers have breakdown cover we also make sure their vehicles are well maintained by covering MOT costs. Furthermore, instruct staff to follow best practices such as keeping phones fully charged and on them at all times.
Winter is a magical time, nonetheless, staying safe and well during this time is important more now than ever.
While these are just a few key points from our winter strategy, we know that by properly enforcing these we can ensure that we continue to provide the best home care services possible, even in the winter. If you do require assistance during the winter period (or any) season, we are here to help you.