Care South’s Queensmead in Christchurch awarded Platinum

Care South’s Queensmead care home in Christchurch is one of just 62 homes from across England to win a Quality Hallmark Award again. This came just three years after receiving the prestigious honour from the National Gold Standards Framework (GSF) Centre, the UK’s largest provider of training in end of life care.

Home manager at Queensmead, Emma Cotton, said, “We’re delighted to receive this accreditation; it is a fantastic achievement for the home. We pride ourselves on providing the best possible care, tailored for the individual needs of all our residents, and we are all very pleased that our hard work has been recognised in this way.”

Staff from the home will receive the award from Martin Green OBE, chief executive of Care England, at a special ceremony in London on 28 September.

Mr Green said, “The GSF programme has shown to be transformational, not only for staff, but for relatives and residents. GSF helps demystify dying, and encourages everyone to play their part, so staff morale improves and turnover decreases. In enabling better quality care, with better outcomes recognised by CQC, this helps differentiate quality homes from others, making them stand out in this vital area of care.”

Care South’s director of residential care services, Graham Brittain, said he was incredibly proud that the dedication and commitment of Queensmead staff, and excellence of this Care South home, had been recognised adding, “At Care South we are passionate about making life better for our residents and ensuring they live rewarding lives whilst in our care. Our staff are all well-trained and empathetic to each and every individual who lives in one of our homes.”

Only homes that demonstrate their credentials for the second, third or fourth time receive the Platinum award.

GSF Quality Hallmark Awards are presented to homes that demonstrate real improvement in the quality of care they provide. Many homes have successfully halved the number of their residents dying in hospital, as well as slashing crisis hospital admissions by 50%, leading to greater satisfaction for families, residents and staff while also contributing to significant cost savings for the NHS.

Three thousand care homes have completed the GSF Care Homes programme since it was launched in 2004 and 600 have gone on to become accredited.