Recognition for home care team
Home Care Heroes award for Good Oaks’ 40-strong carers
CARERS from Newbury are among a team that has won the prestigious Home Care Heroes Team of the Year Award.
The team, based in Reading, provides care for clients in Chieveley, Newbury and other areas of West Berkshire.
The 40-strong Good Oaks Home Care team was recognised for their hard work and dedication during the Covid-19 lockdown after they went above and beyond to look after their 60 clients and staff.
The team provides home care visits and live-in care for elderly patients so they can continue to live happily and safely within their own homes for as long as possible.
This meant that the team’s clients were all classed as vulnerable and the team swung into action in March to ensure they could keep everyone safe and healthy.
Team director Ingrida Savickaite said: “It’s amazing. It’s so nice for the team to be recognised and rewarded.
“Most of the time the team works quietly behind the scenes looking after our clients.
“We are helping the NHS, and so it’s great to be noticed for the good job we are doing.
“We have such an amazing team here – I’m so proud to be part of Good Oaks.”
Many Good Oaks live-in carers isolated with clients so they could continue to provide the best and safest care for them, and it meant the team also supporting each other.
This meant delivering food parcels to clients who chose to self-isolate at home and regular contact calls and Skype videos, delivering PPE to clients and carers, setting up a group chat to discuss where the best places were to get supermarket slots for food and delivering food parcels and shopping.
Miss Savickaite said that the team was dedicated to best practice and making sure that everyone in their care was looked after to the highest and safest standard.
People were cared for in a holistic way, rather than timeand-task based manner – so that meant that if a carer needed to stay slightly longer with a client who was feeling isolated, low or anxious, they were given that time.
It was important to the team that nothing felt rushed and they could be there for their clients at that critical time.
Good Oaks Home Care cofounder Ben Ashton said: “We’re so proud of the team.
“They have truly gone the extra mile for their clients and team.
“They have shown just how caring they are and just how dedicated they are to supporting each other and looking after each other and their clients – which is our ethos here at Good Oaks.
“This year has been tough for carers and clients alike, and so it’s brilliant to see the team get the recognition they deserve. We are very proud.”