Caru Regional Networks Are Back With a New Look!
The Caru Regional Leads are proud to provide education and networking opportunities to nursing home staff across Ireland. One important element of the Caru Programme are our Regional Network events, held annually in each CHO region. The purpose of the Regional Networks is to facilitate peer-to-peer education in palliative, end-of-life and bereavement care for all staff working in nursing homes.
The first Caru Regional Network for 2024 was held in Naas, Kildare and was hosted by Ann-Marie Murphy, Caru Regional Lead for CHO 7. Sixty-nine attendees joined the event at the Lawlor Hotel to hear from Caru and local guest speakers, including a presentation from Simi Chacko, Director of Nursing of Community Response Team CHO7 on her role supporting nursing homes in the face of infection disease outbreaks.
This event introduced a new concept for Caru education events called ‘Education Snacking’ – where 5 local speakers delivered short education presentations to small tables of attendees, rotating around the room delivering information. This format provided ample opportunities for direct Q&A between attendees and experts.
‘Education Snacking’ topics for the day were:
- End-of-Life Resources, Lisa White, EOL Co-Ordinator, Naas Hospital
- H.E.A.R.T.S. Rita Delaney, Holistic Therapy
- Conversations with Families, Nuala Harmey, Bereavement Support
- Assessing continence, Mary Bell, Education and Practice Development Manager, Peamount Healthcare
This Regional Network also included information stands from a variety of national and local organisations including Age & Opportunity, Engaging Dementia, Alone, and the local Community Palliative Care Team. Caru were also pleased to invite the Caru Leads from Baltinglass Hospital, Co Wicklow, to present on their progress with the Caru Programme. The team from Baltinglass Hospital had previously completed the Caru QI Workshops in 2023 under the guidance of Ann-Marie Murphy and were able to share their success in embedding the programme in their nursing home.
If you would like to register your nursing home for the free Caru Programme, you can register via our registration form. You can also reach out to our team by contacting the relevant Regional Lead.