Bringing back life’s sweetness
FOR BARRY Sweetbaum, the social care world was a natural progression from his initial interest in the hotel and restaurant industry. He spent his childhood in New York and his mother’s diagnosis of cancer, and her need for a carer, precipitated a change in direction for him. “I decided care settings and hospitality actually have a similarity — it’s all about people,” he says. Accumulating experience within and beyond the NHS enabled him to set up SweetTree Home Care Services 15 years ago. Around two thirds of clients are Jewish and many of the staff have worked with Jewish organisations.
“Everybody at SweetTree goes through the Jewish Way of Life training,” says Sweetbaum. “We talk about the kashrut rules, Judaism, the festivals... The complicating factor is every house is different, so that is one of the most important messages that we give to the team. Different is normal!”
Staff receive additional information in the run-up to a festival. At Rosh Hashanah, for instance, a recipe was sent out for clients to try, with the help of their carers if needed. “Sometimes family members come back to us and A stroll in the park becomes an option again, for those with live-in help
say: ‘They made the most amazing honey cake’... the family didn’t expect it but it was special.”
For people who cannot manage at home and have little or no family or friends, home care may not be the best choice, he says. “Sometimes moving into a care home is much more appropriate and the Jewish community has some wonderful care homes.”
But he is obviously a great advocate of home care. “It is a wonderful way to support people in their own homes; it
helps people do all those things that they want to do but they may find difficult on their own.”
And in future more people may be able to stay in their own homes. “We are setting up SweetTree Connect, a ‘telecare’ provider. It looks at how we can help people remain independent within their own homes, using technology. Many people aren’t sure, when their mother or father is at home alone, if they are eating properly. Are they sleeping properly? Are they caring for themselves, or do they need more support? Through the installation of a couple of very simple sensors, we can start to identify whether there are any concerns with eating, sleeping and that sort of thing. It’s a way to put that extra layer of safety in without having another individual there all the time.”
He is rightly proud of what SweetTree can offer. This includes services for older people with age-related frailties such as dementia, as well as support for people with brain injuries and specialist neurological conditions such as MS, MND and Parkinson’s. There is also a specialist end-of-life service.
Perhaps the most unusual aspect of SweetTree is its farm. “We have sheep, chickens, rabbits, ducks, donkeys and goats. People can do gardening, be with animals and nature, in a safe setting. A lot of the younger people who go there have learning disabilities or brain injuries. We use the farm to help people build the skills they need to live more independently. Animals are nonjudgmental — they don’t mind what challenges somebody has.”
It may seem gloomy to ponder our advancing years but Sweetbaum happily deals with the issues every day. “I work with amazing people... They change people’s lives and there are not many roles in society where you can say that.”