Dietary, Activities, & Social Services

Dietary

Our Dietary Department is interested in serving our residents attractive nutritional meals based on the Recommended Daily Allowance. Meals are served family style in the dining room overlooking the garden on one side and the courtyard on the other. Special occasions such as holidays allow for special treats. Residents must dress for lunch and dinner. Breakfast is served in the resident's room, or, if the resident wishes, in the dining room. Resident's guests meals are limited.

Modified diets are provided when ordered by a physician. When snacks are requested or required, we have on-floor stations to provide between-meal nourishments that are tasty as well as nourishing. Our dietary supervisors are available to discuss meals with the residents and to give encouragement for an adequate food intake.

Activities

The activities program is coordinated by a qualified Activities Director, staff, and responsible and interested volunteers on a 7 day-a-week basis. Upon admission all residents are visited and, with them an on-going program is set up according to their interests and needs as well as their physicians recommendation.

We try to encourage the resident to have incentive to use his or her own mental and physical abilities to make life rich and full, by the anticipation and enjoyment of programs in which each may participate. These programs encourage companionship, fun, a sense of belonging, development of new interests, adjustment to the new environment and the feeling of being needed and useful. Resident and community involvement to these ends is evident in the number of regular volunteers who come to contribute their talents. The Residents' Council meets periodically to formulate their personal desires and present them to the administration. As a result of this community-staff-resident cooperation, many seasonal and year-round activities are in evidence, such as bingo, crafts, gardening, cooking, outings, pet therapy, musical entertainment, sewing, games and sports. A shopping cart filled with incidentals tours all floors once a week and monthly birthdays are celebrated. Religious services are held weekly. The facility is fortunate in having good rapport with the surrounding communities. Many programs are provided not only by the activities department but by community organizations. The various personalities from the community are what make life here a little more special. Volunteer hours are appreciated and are coordinated by the Volunteer Coordinator.

Social Services

The goal of this department is to help the resident feel that the Harding Home is his or her home and to promote a feeling of security for the residents and their families.

Before admission to our facility, an interview with the prospective new resident is conducted by the social worker and a nurse. This is done to determine the care needed, the type of room desired (private or semi-private), the goals to be achieved for discharge planning and the personal likes and dislikes as to food, activities, etc.

It is the responsibility of Social Services to formulate plans for admissions and discharges and to counsel families as to financial matters such as eligibility for Medicare and Medicaid. They are available for confidential counseling sessions in any matters that are of a serious concern to the resident and/or family. On planning for discharge, Home Health Services, Visiting Nurses and other health agencies are used and follow up is made to ascertain that discharge placement is adequate.

Visiting hours at the Home are 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Families are encouraged to take residents out for dinner at home, riding and shopping trips.