Birchwood House review: thoughts from the community
This month, Birchwood House completed the Quality Assurance Questionnaire, a survey for our residents and their loved ones. This is essential feedback for us, and the results are used to shape and develop the care we provide.
We’re always looking to stay on top of the game, and this couldn’t be done without your honest, authentic feedback.
Whilst our residents and everyone in the Birchwood family are always urged to review our care, we’re especially grateful for those who took the time to complete our survey, and share such helpful, actionable advice.
What is the Quality Assurance Questionnaire?
This is a survey for care homes that asks for feedback from residents, families, and staff in order to assess the quality of the care. It typically asks questions that are related to regulatory standards, such as the Care Quality Commission’s five key questions:
- Is it safe?
- Is it effective?
- Is it caring?
- Is it responsive to people’s needs?
- Is it well-led?
This is essential for identifying areas for improvement, ensuring compliance with standards, and for recognising what areas we can develop to keep our residents supported.
What did our visitors say?
The results from our visitor questionnaire were truly touching, and we were thrilled to receive such positive feedback:
- 100% of people rated our services positively, with 94% rating their loved one’s care as ‘Very Good’ or ‘Excellent’.
- 95% of people rated the appearance of the home as ‘Good’, ‘Very Good’, or ‘Excellent’.
- We were consistently rated ‘Outstanding’ for our management team, infection prevention, our culture of diversity and inclusion, and how we keep residents central to our care planning.
We want to say a massive thank you to every family member and visitor who shared their thoughts. Your feedback was so motivating, reminding us all of the importance of our work, and the benefits we bring in keeping your loved ones safe.
This year has been a great one in terms of motivating feedback, and our reviews on Carehome.co.uk speak for themselves! A recent favourite has been from the daughter of a beloved resident, who said:
“The care given was full of love, compassion and kindness. We visited everyday and there was always a happy smiling face to let us in, always ready to chat about her care, and telling us what a laugh they had with her. Thank you Birchwood and staff, you really are a home from home.”
Reviews like this are so heartwarming and show us it’s not just the resident that has to feel supported, but also their loved ones. When we can work with the resident’s family efficiently, we can provide more holistic care and communicate more openly. It also helps create a feeling of shared responsibility, and we like for family members to know they have a role in decision-making, and participating in activities and visits.
What did our residents say?
As well as visitor feedback, it’s so important to check our residents are always feeling safe and supported. We were so pleased to know that Sylvia really liked her stay at Birchwood:
“All the staff are so lovely and so fun. No one could be miserable living here” – which we think is a great summary!
One resident had particular praise for Lizzie, our Lifestyle Lead:
“By her expertise and interpersonal skills she has succeeded in converting me from an apprehensive, immobile old bloke into someone well on the way to recovery (from a fall), both physically and in terms of confidence and optimism.”
We’re so glad our residents feel reassured that our staff are here for both physical and emotional support. Providing care can bring its own unique set of challenges, but reviews like this will always remind us that it’s worth it.
Again, a massive thank you to our residents and visitors for your glowing feedback this year! If you missed out on the survey, it’s not too late to have your say. We love hearing about your Birchwood experience at any time of the year – to get in touch with your own review, please contact us, or see the image below:
