The funniest thing about the job is that something happens all the time, says Jenny Johansson, a female employee at what Vansborough calls the Service Team.
She and three of her other colleagues are responsible for cleaning food boxes and delivering them to the elderly. In the past, home care used to do this, but to make their work less stressful, a new group of employees was created.
Since the group started, many seniors have become more active and have also been involved in group tasks. For example, some people usually help with vacuuming, washing dishes, or cleaning the dining table.
– We’ve noticed that users think it’s fun, and that you cheer things up a bit. Jenny Johansson says it would be a way to show that you can still do this.
Less stress in home care
Jenny Johansson believes the fact that older adults are active and that help can be due to several things. On the one hand, they get more visits now after visiting both the home care and service team, and on the other hand she doesn’t have an emergency phone, so the user knows she will stay as long as she said.
The service team has been around since the end of last year and was initially designed as a three month project. However, it has been extended until January 2023.
It becomes a way to show that you can still do it.
Madeline Tongring, Home Service Planner and Workplace Representative for the Kommunal Division, hopes the project will be lasting.
There was much less stress among the home care staff and the cleaning was also done properly, she says.
Best for the elderly
When Jenny Johansson accepted the job, she was a newly graduated nurse. She was relieved when she was hired for a three-month project that she wanted to think about what she should do next.
Now she wants to stay. Being able to participate and start something new, as well as contribute to improving the conditions of the elderly, is important to Jenny Johansson.
I feel like I’m back home.
“I’ve never thought of it before, but it’s very intimate to go into someone’s house and start looking for their things,” she says, continuing:
– After studying for a year and a half, I feel like I’m back home. After all, I have fun and my alarm will never interrupt me.
Jenny’s Tips for Engaging Seniors
1. Create the structure and order
Many users may find it annoying that different employees come and go all the time.
At Vansbro, they employ a total of four people who take care of, among other things, cleaning in the homes of the elderly, two of whom work in Dala-Järna and Nås. The other two work for Vansbro.
2. Set the times when it will appear
Jenny and her colleagues always clean up in the morning and then pay another visit in the afternoon, when they leave the lunch boxes. Then users know what times they will appear and don’t have to wait.
3. Remember that everyone is different
Some users may find it amusing to offer help, while others prefer to stay away. One way to energize a curious person is to ask questions and also allow them to help out to the extent they can.
An example is if a person received a new vacuum cleaner. Then you can ask if the user wants to show how it works.
4. No emergency phone
Unlike home service, neither Jenny nor her colleagues have emergency phones. Thanks to that, they can focus on the user they are at home with and stay for the time they said they would.
Some users said they thought it was a good idea for the phone not to ring, according to Jenny.
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