Creating a heartwarming holiday season in aged care

First published: December 2023

The festive season in Residential Aged Care is a time to bring the residents and their families together to celebrate the Christmas period. It may be a new experience for those observing this occasion away from the comfort of their family home, so making sure that everyone feels included in the festivities is imperative to forming a warm, homely atmosphere.

The operations around executing the holiday activities vary from home to home, and depends on the home size, staffing and the residents. Vimala Singh, the Facility Manager for Gillawarna Village (Georges Hall) Bankstown City Aged Care, has worked in various homes over her 14-year aged care career. Working her way up from Assistant in Nursing to Director of Care, she understands the aged care industry inside and out and has partaken in cultural celebrations of all natures. We asked her about the home she currently manages and what her and her team do for the end of the year celebrations.

Q. How do you usually celebrate this season and what are the processes that surround it?

A. The teams that we collaborate with is HR and the Lifestyle Officers. We usually start from the beginning of November and it goes right up until the new year. Decorations are always one of the first elements to be organized and they are an integral part to creating the festive feel. We make sure to decorate across the home in the regular Christmas colours so it’s recognizable for the residents. Of course, the community of residents in each home will have different needs and they may be situated in different wards, so we like to use the decorations as a way of bringing everyone together. We start this early not only due to level of organisation it takes because of the size of the home (the one I currently manage is 150 beds), but also to instill the Christmas spirit early for the residents.

The Christmas lunch is the main event that is usually held, in my experience, early December and we open the invitation out to the residents’ families so we can all celebrate it together. A menu is devised and presented beforehand and dietary requirements are all considered. The lunch is usually a three-course dinner and is paired with entertainment and performers. We make sure to have extra staff on hand to assist with the lunch and so the residents feel fully attended to when needed. The entertainers and performers that come along could be Christmas carolers, dancers, and a few years ago we had a Santa. We keep it interactive for the residents and include Christmas gifts that are tailored to what each person would like. These gifts are discussed with the whole team, so we give something which holds a special meaning to each resident.

Q. Do the residents have any personal requests, and how do you make sure the activities will be well received and inclusive for all?

A. With the lunch it’s more just the dietary requirements, which we know anyway. If certain residents struggle with eating solids, we make sure the meals they are served are easily pureed and are fed to them by a respective nurse. The entertainers are usually people we’ve had in before. As much as changing things up isn’t a bad thing, we want everyone to enjoy the festivities and we pick people that have visited the home multiple times and ones that we know the residents enjoy. These performers usually come in twice a month, and we communicate with other homes to see how their choices of entertainers have been received.

Q. How do you ensure that it is a family orientated celebration?

A. There aren’t any restrictions on family visits at all so they can come and visit anytime. We always open up the lunch to the families so they can accompany their loved ones during this time. As the lunch is held before Christmas Day, on the 25th families often go out together, or if the resident isn’t very mobile we cater to the families wishes of holding their own personal celebrations inside the home. If for any reason the families are unable to visit on the day, we do have a lunch of some sort for them, so everyone is included in some way shape or form. If we need to make exceptions for residents, we will work with the lifestyle team to put something in place.

Q. Do you think that spending your holiday season in aged care has changed your outlook on your own celebrations, and has it changed your perspective on family traditions?

A. It’s been a learning curve for me as we are just getting back into the swing of things after covid. During the pandemic, we couldn’t hold these events like we would have done in the past so it’s nice to see the team, residents and their families coming back together after this period. Each home is different, but at Gillawarna Village about 90% of our staff are from Nepalese backgrounds so celebrating this religious tradition is a new experience for them. It’s great for them to experience new traditions with their residents and they can learn about cultural practices from each other. We recently celebrated Diwali and Dashain, and the staff enjoyed sharing more about their religious customs and how they mark these significant occasions in their cultural calendars.

Q. What does having these celebrations in place mean for the residents in your care?

A. The one thing I strive for in the homes that I’ve managed is that it doesn’t make a difference if you are in a residential home. It’s our responsibility to make sure every resident feels comfortable, and that homely essence isn’t lost just because they are no longer in their family residence. They look forward to this every year, and we try to follow their traditions the best that we can. We are always looking for new days to mark other celebrations that the residents would have naturally celebrated so they don’t feel out of place. For example, we recently had Melbourne Cup and I underestimated how many residents had this as an integral part of their calendars, so next year I am going to make sure we invest more time and energy into making it annual event that is noteworthy for all. We try to mirror their natural lives before moving into the home to the best of our ability. The feeling of being included is paramount and we do the best that we possibly can.

During this busy time, Sanctuary Recruitment can support your home with staffing levels across metro, regional, rural and remote areas of Australia. If you are looking for a reliable and available nursing team, or you are looking for a new opportunity across the Christmas period, please get in contact with us on 02 8459 8101, or get in touch below: