New Initiative Launched To Unlock Conversations And Memories Proving To Be A Success At Penarth Home

The Key to me Programme is made up of four components

A new initiative launched by Methodist Homes (MHA designed to unlock conversations is proving to be a huge success at a Penarth home.

MHA launched the Key to me programme, which is their new approach to life story and reminiscence work.

It enables care workers to build stronger relationships between residents, their families, and colleagues by learning more about their lives.

Staff at MHA Ty Gwyn have been utilising the programme by creating themed keys on a keychain with information such as their likes, dislikes and preferences in a bid to gain more information and have more meaningful conversations.

MHA Ty Gwyn provides nursing care for 45 residents.

Mary-Anne Rawle, activity coordinator at the home initially made her own theme keys as a prop but decided to use them in her 1 to 1 sessions with residents and found the keys worked really well as ice breakers.

She added: “The personal keys are a great way to start a conversation and so far they are working really well.

“We do have some residents who are quiet and struggle to make conversations, but by showing them my keys it has helped to break down that barrier.

“I have had some great conversations with residents and found out so much more about them thanks to conversations starting from the keys.

“My keys were initially just meant to be used as props but residents and even staff have shown a great interest in wanting to know more about me.

“The family members of residents have also shown great interest, and I have had plenty of conversations with family members about the keys and how well they work.

“Programmes such as Key to Me can help us all improve the care we provide and make it more person centred.

“It’s a great initiative led by MHA, and I do hope more homes are using the services provided to them to the best of their ability.”