My Back to Business Strategy

By Bella Belaci, general manager of Ridgeway Rise care home which has just celebrated its first anniversary. The home offers residential, nursing and dementia care.

Summarise how Covid-19 has affected your organisation? 

For many people the time has finally come to return to work. Like many others within the healthcare sector, Ridgeway Rise care home never stopped working. We had no option to work from home, close or reduce services.

From the very first reports of possible global disruption that COVID 19 was expected to bring, we had to do our utmost to protect vulnerable adults in our care as well as the team members supporting them. 

This virus made us reduce non-essential visits from the residents’ families and friends. We had to provide sufficient PPE and food supplies. Most importantly we had to keep up pretences of normality for those, who could have been at risk of misinterpreting this abnormal, new situation. 

What has been your plan to continue?  

The only constant thing has been daily updates, new advices and recommendation from the government and health and safety agencies. It is hard to plan, not knowing what tomorrow is going to bring. We take days one by one. 

How have things changed over the last few months?  

It is very difficult to judge how our business changed over the last months. We’ve been in this situation for so long, it almost started turning into new ‘normal’. 

We all miss pre-lockdown life, where we had lots of visitors, weekly outings, contacts with schools and regular open days with live entertainers.

What has been the most positive aspect? 

These past weeks have definitely made us appreciate modern technology more. The residents stay in touch with their families through FaceTime, Skype and Zoom. We are very active on our social media, providing relatives and friends with daily portion of news and updates from Ridgeway Rise’s life.

We are very grateful to all local businesses and providers for their kind donations, discounts and support. By staying together, we observe the true spirit of solidarity. We also receive many letters, cards, beautiful artwork and rounds of applause from local children, when they pass our building.

What are your top tips at this time? 

At trying times all businesses should think of:

1. Keeping their profile high.

2. Making smart decisions, which perhaps do not work now but will bring lots of benefits in long term perspective. 

3. Allow room for compromise, care for their team and keep their spirits and confidence high.

What would you like to say to your potential guest and their relatives? 

Ridgeway Rise has been COVID-19 free during the entire period of pandemic. We offer a safe, caring and fun environment for everyone, offering residential, nursing, respite and dementia packages to everyone who needs it. 

Your parting thoughts? 

We wish everyone to find themselves stronger on the other side of this crisis.

For more information visit www.ridgewayrise.com