Introducing our Relatives’ Gateway

Just imagine the scene: it’s the middle of the afternoon, you are sitting in your lounge or at the office and you wonder what sort of a day your loved one is having here at Ashridge Court.

You grab your mobile phone, enter your login details and voilà – you can see that your relative had fish followed by bread & butter pudding (their favourite) for lunch and are currently getting nice and messy in a cake decorating session organised by the activities team. You can also see that they had cereal and toast for breakfast, a cup of coffee mid-morning and their medication was given at the usual time. Plus your concern about a slight cough has receded – the notes tell you that they didn’t cough at all during the night. But to be sure, you log a question on the system and await the response.

This is no futuristic fantasy. All this functionality – and more – is already available, thanks to our Relatives’ Gateway. This is a two-way portal that allows you access to your relative’s day-to-day notes and information about any aspect of their care including meals, wellbeing and daily activities. You’re free to make a comment, send a message, ask a question and upload photos.

It’s a very straightforward system. Staff use special handheld devices to enter residents’ care notes and other information at the point of care into the Mobile Care Monitoring (MCM) system, our person-centred digital care software, which feeds directly into Relatives’ Gateway. As a result, less time is spent on administration, phone calls or finding information and more with residents. The system also includes a comprehensive shift handover process to communicate with care staff easily and track if that information has been received. And, thanks to its high degree of transparency, Relatives’ Gateway facilitates greater trust and healthier working relationships between families and the home.

During the pandemic – and especially at times when the home has been closed to visitors – families who use it say that they have found the portal to be instrumental in helping them to continue playing an important part in their relative’s care, while also providing reassurance that they are safe and enjoying the best possible quality of life and wellbeing.

To have access to Relatives’ Gateway relatives need a Power of Attorney or permission from their loved one. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact our home manager on 01424 842357.