RELATIVES' INFO

As part of our continued work to relax visiting guidelines and get back to a ‘new normal’ in our care homes, we are happy to announce that, with immediate effect, indoor visiting can now take place seven days a week. As before, our residents can receive up to two visitors at a time, from different households if necessary, and these do not have to be designated visitors.

In line with Scottish Government’s ‘Open with Care’ guidance, please find here our guidelines on residents staying overnight with a loved one.  Please remember that overnight visiting carries a risk to visitors, residents and staff, therefore careful attention to infection prevention and control measures must be in place to reduce such risk.

In line with the general easing of lockdown restrictions across the country, and following a successful trial this week, we are delighted to introduce out-of-home visiting and trips for residents and relatives.

Here are our guidelines for happy and safe visits out of the home.

We’re delighted to be taking this important step after what’s been a long wait for everyone.

Protecting your loved one and our staff is our top priority, and that’s especially true of us opening our doors once more. Here are our initial guidelines, which will change as transmission risks reduce.

From January 26, our window visiting guidelines changed from one to two people per visit.

Due to growing concerns regarding the newly identified COVID variant virus, all Balhousie Care Group homes are again temporarily closed to all visits with immediate effect and until further notice.

Balhousie Care Group is delighted to now be accepting up to six visitors per resident from up to two households for garden and window visits at our care homes. These visits can last for up to 45 minutes once a week. In addition, our homes are bringing in measures to make outdoor visits more comfortable, including constructing gazebos, having residents remain inside for visits, and purchasing outdoor heaters and intercom systems.

After in-house discussion among our management and advisors, and taking into account clinical evidence on the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Balhousie Care Group has suspended in-home visits with our residents until further notice, with the exception of end of life visitation.

Garden and window visits will continue and as before are required to be booked in advance so we can safely manage the number of visitors on-site. You can do this via our online booking system or by calling the Home Manager directly.

THANK YOU for all your patience and support these last few months. We are aware that the rules surrounding care home visitation have been subject to a number of changes and we truly appreciate your understanding.

We are delighted to now be accepting up to two visitors per resident for garden visits at our care homes. These can last for up to 30 minutes once a week.

The threat of COVID-19 is still very real to our vulnerable and elderly. That’s why we’re following the strictest infection prevention and control measures for visitors, including the wearing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), thermal imaging cameras to detect high temperatures, and staggered visits through an online booking system.

THANK YOU for your cooperation and support as we all continue to navigate our ‘new normal’.

We’ve been overwhelmed with the messages of support and thanks we have received from relatives during lockdown. Thank YOU for thanking us. It means a lot.

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL VISITORS:

Non-essential visits to our care homes are now suspended.

As you know, the health and safety of our residents is of the utmost importance to us at Balhousie Care Group. In the light of the current situation regarding Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the daily changes to the government guidelines, we feel it is important for us to protect our residents and minimise the risk to them as much as possible.

For this reason, all non-essential visits to the care home are now suspended until further notice.