Innovation in supporting older people living in care homes

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My PhD research found how the support networks of older people living in care homes affected their wellbeing. By talking to residents, I constructed an idea of who supported them, how they were supported and established if those people knew one another. This allowed the construction of a support network and gave a better understanding of why residents felt supported by some people more than others. Findings suggest that moving into a care home solves one set of problems by providing more care, but creates a new set of problems by making the older person feel more socially isolated. In particular, the research identified that many residents did not feel supported by staff and felt the majority of their support was provided by family, despite many residents having complex care needs. Residents identified a number of ways staff/resident relationships could be improved. Results identified a number of barriers to support, especially when considering connections with friends, neighbours and community connections. Alternative approaches and solutions to maintaining supportive connections were identified, which would enable residents to feel less socially isolated and empowered in their choice of social connections. Engaging stakeholders with these evidence-based findings and recommendations could improve the social inclusion and wellbeing of older people living in care homes. Disseminating this work would inform CH decision-makers of the gaps in support for residents and advise them of the possibilities of creating a wider care home community which would help support residents. Importantly for this fellowship, my research also found that care homes could improve support by drawing on the resources of external organisations and integrating their services into care home routines in order to encourage socialization between residents through activities with purpose and wider supportive services in the care home community. Care homes included in my PhD research recruited Impact Arts (a company based across Scotland which aim to 'help people and communities transform their lives through creativity') to run craft cafés in their homes. These cafés offered art services to residents, with trained artists, in a care home space which was completely dedicated to art. Residents discussed how the cafés and Impact Art staff created an opportunity for social inclusion and contributed to their wellbeing. As the cafés were not the main focus of the PhD, this was not explored in the project. The research will explore how Impact Arts aims to improve the lives of care home residents, and why residents believe the services of Impact Arts is different from activities provided by the care home or other services. Data will be collected through 3 focus groups at different care homes. This evaluative research could produce evidence of the social wealth that craft cafés create and allow Impact Arts to continue and potentially expand their business. The dissemination of this research could allow the care home industry to draw on the model used by Impact Arts and thus, improve the provision of support in care homes.