Visitor pod at care home proves popular

Family and residents delighted with pandemic initiative

Family and friends visiting Werrington Lodge Care Home can now use an indoor visiting pod as the Covid-19 pandemic continues.

For the last few months, the care home on Baron Court has been hosting a series of window and garden visits but now say that they are able to ‘offer another step towards normal’.

The indoor pod is made up of a stud wall with perspex screens, with microphones and speakers mounted to each side. There is also a hearing aid loop.

Barchester Healthcare, which runs the home, has put much careful planning into visitor protocols.

Visitors must not have tested positive for Covid-19 in the last 14 days or be showing any symptoms and they may only access a designated indoor area that will not jeopardise the safety of anyone else in the home.

The news has been welcomed by family and friends of residents, who were concerned about how visits would take place as winter loomed.

General manager Luke Cook said: “This has been a much welcomed development in unprecedented times. The visits are well organised and a lot of safety measures have been put in place. Hence we haven’t had a resident case of Covid-19 in the home.

“It was wonderful to see the indoor pod make the residents and their relatives so happy.

“We are welcoming new residents into our homes to ensure that we are there for those that need care and support and we have a very clear admission policy and infection control protocols that must be met.”

Inside the pod