Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Help elderly residents over winter months
A care at home company is urging the people of Monklands to think about their older neighbours as we head into the depths of winter.
CERA Care teams provide support to people in communities across North Lanarkshire.
They are asking residents to help ensure vulnerable or elderly neighbours stay cosy and warm, have regular meals and hot drinks, and move about to keep fit and healthy.
Sarah Herriott, service manager at CERA Care’s Coatbridge office, said: “Handing in a card may bring a smile and cheer to loneliness this cold winter.
“Ringing a door bell, standing back the required distance or just having a wee chat from the garden gate can make a huge difference. Our community spirit has never been more important with all the social restrictions we have faced.”
CERA Care is one of the biggest providers of professional care at home in Scotland to older and less able people.
This support is provided on contract to local authorities through its network of branch offices across the country.
Care at home brings independent living to people in their own homes with care workers providing essential day to day care and personal care as well as respite care and support to people returning home from hospital.
Sarah’s team went above and beyond to make up Christmas hampers for the people they care for.
The care workers in North Lanarkshire donated the contents for the amazing hampers, which were made up by colleague Mary Walker from Bellshill and distributed in the run-up to Christmas.
CERA Care have a number of tips for this winter, including: keep in touch with friends and relatives; keep warm by wearing clothing in layers; just heat your main living area if it’s hard to heat the whole house; keep active to stay warm – walk around the house if it’s not good weather for going out; have emergency numbers close to hand; and help keep paths clear with salt and clearing snow.
Sarah added: “Sometimes our care workers may be the only person someone talks to in a full day.
“We would encourage you to look out for your neighbours and for those less able who may be living alone. Or could you help with delivering some food shopping, or clear a snowy or icy path?
“Even just a smiling face can make such a difference. Never have our communities been more important. Sending a note, a greetings card or picking up the phone to someone just to say hello can make a massive difference.
“With so little daylight through the coming weeks in the depths of a Scottish winter, it can be even more gloomy for many who live alone. Just a little ‘hello’ can brighten someone’s day.”