Activities, socialising and singing with carer Mike Giuliano have noticeably improved John’s life, says his wife Sandra.
John, a former pilot, has memory issues after a stroke, and Sandra was looking for part-time care for him.
John and Sandra didn’t need the usual daily home care visits offered by care providers, as Sandra is with John most of the time, but she found that Walfinch home care Chiswick, Hammersmith and Kensington, had a flexible solution, in the form of their care team member Mike.
Mike, who started as a carer with Walfinch after enjoying helping older people with shopping in the pandemic, accompanies John a couple of hours each fortnight. He takes John to Sparkle, an intergenerational community centre at St Stephen’s Church East Putney, where John and other older members help and share activities with local nursery and school children, and have lunch.
Mike says: “John enjoys doing the standing or seated exercises, breathing exercises and meditation – and I join in too. Sometimes we do singing, and there are activities like craft and games, which we can all join in with the children. It means the children enjoy time with their ‘grand friends’ and the older people can pass on skills and knowledge to the children.”
John says: “Mike is more like a friend than a carer and we enjoy our time together.”
Sandra explains: “Mike and John chat together and John likes taking part in the exercises and activities at Sparkle, which are good for physical health and overall wellbeing.
“I’ve seen improvements in John’s condition and mood since Mike started taking him to these activities.”
John can do many activities for himself – he goes to a local Singing for the Brain session on his own – but for other activities he needs a bit of support, and it’s a nice change for John to have some male company, explains Sandra.
The care hours are flexible, so sometimes, if Sandra is not available in the evening, Mike comes over to cook and eat with John. Sandra laughs: “John says Mike’s pasta dishes are better than mine!”
She adds: “Mike provides proper individualised care and and he’s genuinely interested in John
“As a care customer you must be confident that a care provider really understands what’s needed. Everyone in the team at Walfinch home care Chiswick, Hammersmith and Kensington understands what John needs and I trust them completely.”
