It’s no surprise that singing improves health and well-being, both for those in care settings and those in the wider community. To bring understanding of this to a wider audience,  ‘Ageing Voices’ is a series of online talks, celebrating and exploring this topic aimed at musicians, carers, health care teams working with older people, and everyone lucky to be ageing with a love of singing.

Online sessions are taking place from 1-2pm from Monday 9th to Thursday 12th November – and on Thursday 12th, Áine Murphy – carer from our Moorehall Lodge Ardee – is part of the panel that will talk about ‘Singing for Care’. They are free to join, but you will need to register here > www.singireland.ie/news/ageing-voices

On a monthly basis, LMFM picks a local hero to give an award to and on 10th December the monthly winners all gathered to receive their awards at the Valley Inn.

Aine was October’s unsung hero and appeared on Late Lunch to talk about her work here at Moorehall Lodge Ardee.

The awards pay tribute to the people of the north-east who help others, volunteer for community organisations or do good deeds on a regular basis.

We’re incredibly proud of Aine’s achievements and wish her many congratulations on receiving the well-deserved award.

The Nursing Homes Ireland (NHI) Care Awards recognise excellent care provided across a range of disciplines within nursing homes and innovative practice in care provision.

RTE presenter Marty Whelan will MC the national awards ceremony final on Thursday, November 14 at Dublin’s Citywest Hotel.

Speaking about her nomination, Áine said: “I nearly dropped the phone when I found out I had been nominated, but because I wouldn’t swap this job for the world, I feel like a winner every day.”

“I started working with Moorehall Lodge at 17, and through this job I have flourished as a person.

“I would certainly recommend this as a career for others. Our household model makes caring very personal within a positive living and working environment.

“Moorehall Lodge is a warm and caring place to work where everyone feels at home and part of a family.

“When you come to work on a Monday morning, you can expect to be filling everyone in the household in on what you were up to that weekend.

“You get a huge amount of feedback from the people you are caring for and it creates an environment where people grow into themselves.”

Over 300 nominations were put forward from people in communities across Ireland for the NHI Care Awards’ ten award categories.

NHI represents over 400 nursing homes throughout Ireland, and the fact that just 28 people have been shortlisted for the finals shows the scale of Moorehall Living’s achievement.

Moorehall Living CEO Sean McCoy was delighted with the news of Aine’s nomination.

“This recognition on a national stage means to so much to Aine and all of us at Moorehall Lodge” he said.

“We are proud that both our residents and staff think of Moorehall Lodge as home, and Aine and the team around her are embodiments of that ethos.”

RTE Radio One’s Today With Sean O’Rourke featured a report on the classes, which involve a combination of breathing exercises, child-like playfulness and laughter exercises to produce laughter for prolonged periods of time.

Reporter Evelyn O’Rourke shone a light on the amazing feel good factor generated by the classes, which are hosted by Drogheda-based trained laughter yoga specialist Louise Carolan.

Classes are hosted on a monthly basis, as part of an active social programme, and involve residents and staff from all six households at Moorehall Lodge Drogheda.

“Laughter is a serious business and it is the best medicine. It is amazing to share it in a nursing home where you can see people’s eyes and faces lighting up as the class progresses,” said Louise.

“In the classes, we use fake laughter to stimulate and generate real laughter. Laughter makes everything feels better, teaches you resilience and consistently lightens everyone’s mood.”

Director of Care at Moorehall Lodge Drogheda, Caroline Day, believes that there are amazing benefits from the classes, which include such sections as giving out laughter.

“We have six households here, and so all residents may not know each other. But when they start laughing it creates a connection between people, especially those who may be shy about making connections with others,” said Caroline.

“Behind the laughter there is work being done, giving the residents a talking point among themselves and their visitors.

“Laughter yoga has so many benefits. Because participants are breathing in more, they are increasing their lung capacity, allowing more oxygen in which leads to more relaxation.

“While the residents may start off with a fake laugh, before you know it, it turns into a real laugh.,

“When we laugh, the laughter releases serotonin, which is our body’s natural anti-depressant. It also releases endorphins, which are our body’s natural pain killer.

“So straight away, we have a better sense of wellbeing. Physiologically and physically we have a better sense of who we are.

“After the yoga has finished, residents will still be in that happy mode for about an hour afterwards.”

The classes, which have been running for a year, were originally suggested by Moorehall Living’s activities co-ordinator Frances Byrne.

RTE listeners heard Moorehall Lodge residents speak about how much they enjoyed the class and couldn’t stop laughing.

“It makes me feel good. Everywhere you look, someone is laughing,” said one resident.

Family visitor Liam Doran was effusive in his praise for the classes.

“These activities, and the socialisation that goes with it are absolutely vital,” he said.

“You can see this morning that my mother-in-law is buoyed up by it. She is happy and talking about it. Little activities go a long way.”

Dermot, who has worked in the maintenance team across Moorehall Living for the past decade, was recognised for his special contribution to the life of Moorehall Living.

The recognitions on the night honour staff members who have gone above the call of duty in the past year at Moorehall Lodge Drogheda, Moorehall Lodge Ardee, Moorehall Retirement Village and My Life by Moorehall Living.

The night, attended by almost 200 staff members, board members and retired colleagues, was a chance for Moorehall Living to show its appreciation for the part that the staff plays in the award-wining culture.

A host of staff members were recognised for 15 and 10 years’ service with Moorehall Living at the glittering night as well as many categories voted on by colleagues, residents and families.

The appreciation honours as voted by residents and families went to Patricia Fitzpatrick (Drogheda), Aine Murphy (Ardee) and Elaine Brennan (My Life by Moorehall Living).

There was huge applause as Joy Thomas (Drogheda), Andrew Rafferty (My Life) and Trudy Gillespie (Ardee) took the plaudits from their fellow team members as the Most Supportive Colleague in each service.

The staff members at Millmount household at Moorehall Lodge Drogheda won the John McCoy Team of The Year perpetual trophy.

Leah Murray from Moorehall Lodge Ardee was the winner of Ola’s Prize – an educational bursary named in honour of Ola Noga, an inspirational colleague who passed away two years ago.

Leah is currently studying sign language at Trinity College and combines her duties in Moorehall Lodge Ardee with providing sign language services to the new My Life by Moorehall Living service.

15-year service awards were given to Temitipe Odumosu and Roma McCreanor while 10-year recognitions were awarded to Dermot Caffrey, Caroline Caffrey, Theresa Giggins, Madgalena Gawlik Brzegowy, Sharon Burns, Trudy Gillespie, Jeena Antoney, Vivienne McGahon, Pawel Nowicki and Anand Mathew.

“Our staff appreciation night is one of the highlights of the year for us. We come together to say thank you to our staff who are at the very heart of our award-winning care,” said Founder and Chairman Michael McCoy.

“We are all very passionate about our work and are very proud of the unique and warm care environment we have created where people really flourish.

“We are proud that both our residents and staff think of Moorehall Living as home, and our whole team are embodiments of that ethos.

“With just under 300 staff members, Moorehall Living is a large contributor to the economic life of Drogheda, Ardee and Mid-Louth, but what makes our care special is the love that our staff have for each other and the people that they care for.”

Maeve Montgomery, the Dementia Adviser for Co. Louth, will be on the unit to give information and advice to anyone who has any questions.

The unit will be at Ardee Library, Market St, from 10.30 am to 1 pm on Friday 16th February and will give information and support to people with dementia and their families in their own communities. This unit brings trained staff and volunteers to the heart of Irish communities with one-to-one consultations also available.

Anna Louise first joined the Moorehall Living community as a resident in Ardee in 2004, and Martin and his wife Ann have played a full part in life at Moorehall Lodge Ardee ever since.

“Once we realised that my mother was in the early stages of dementia in 2001, we invited her to move from home in London and come and live with us in Ireland,” said Martin.

“For the first six months, we had a carer in our house for four hours a day, but we knew that we had to see beyond that, and, on medical advice, began to check out nursing homes in the region.

“We visited 12 nursing homes in all, from north Dublin to Cavan. We didn’t know what we were looking for, but we would go and see these places and imagine if my mother would be happy there.

“I have to say that most of them pale into insignifcance and I was deeply unimpressed by one.

“As part of this process I went to Moorehall Lodge Ardee and met Michael McCoy, and he talked about a care facility for people who need a special type of care.

“Even then I knew that Moorehall Lodge Ardee was different – although it has changed an awful lot since then.

“In those days, they had a long corridor with a dark oak door at the end of it – a far cry from how people are introduced to the nursing home today.

“I remember the big room and thinking to myself, isn’t that nice, there is a nice big well-lit room. If mother was there we could come in and sit down and look out on the garden.

“However, at that time, people weren’t in the big room as much and tended to be in their rooms – a far cry from life in household model of care.

“The bottom line is that I remember walking away thinking that Moorehall Lodge is different to what we have seen so far and that I got a really nice feeling from talking to Michael.

“In February 2004, my wife Ann had got word that there was a room available in Moorehall Lodge Ardee and that we had to act fast.

“To be honest, I couldn’t even face the notion of taking my mother in. I didn’t go and see her until a day or so afterwards.

“I have to say I was pleasantly surprised and saw a different environment to the one I had seen with Michael the year previously.

“The first thing that struck me was there was a coffee dock and the fact that I could make my mother a coffee and we could have a chat very quickly changed my perspective.

“There were two other ladies who went in about the same time and they bonded very quickly – one was a German lady and the other was a woman called Margaret.

“My mother had worked in a kindergarten in Belgium before the war and knew some German.

“They all enjoyed art and music, ate together, walked together – in fact, they did everything together.

“In time, it became more apparent that the three ladies needed specialist dementia care and three rooms became available in the specialist dementia household Suaimhneas around the same time.

“In those days, there wasn’t as much to do in Suaimhneas in comparison to today’s incarnation.

“But there was certainly stuff going on in the background. A consultant arrived and talked to all the families about what they would like to see – I would say we did five interviews over a couple of months.

“Meetings were called where there was talk about a household model and looking for a better way to provide inclusive care for everyone.

“The detail went a bit over my head but the message was clear that these people wanted to do something that would give all of us a brighter future.

“My focus was on Suaimhneas but I wasn’t aware that the household concept was unfolding elsewhere in the facility.

“A lot of building work went on and then things started to happen in the big room. For a start, activities came to the household rather than having residents travelling to them.

“Food was brought from the main kitchen to be prepared and enjoyed in the Suaimhneas kitchen, rather than residents travelling to a big dining room where you were served and would leave.

“Once the household concept was introduced, you instantly felt like you were at home.

“I was far more comfortable and at ease and could pull up a chair or sit in an armchair if I wanted to.

“There was great interaction with the staff who were suddenly all working in situ in the households.

“Once the household model was in place, the concept of the Butterfly approach to dementia care was introduced.

“As a group of families, we met dementia care specialist David Sheard and listened to his experiences and stories.

“For example, he told of one resident always used to get so aggressive about 4pm every day that he had been asked to leave three nursing homes.

“No-one knew why, but when someone took an interest in his history, it turned out that he had been a farmer and at 4pm every day he would collect the eggs.

“Mr Sheard’s colleagues then left eggs for him to find in the garden at the same time every day, and the frustration ended there and then.

“For me, that was the door opener to the realisation that there has to be a greater connection between the carer and the person’s history.

“I did a short presentation on my mother’s life and staff members used the highlights as touch points to enable better engagement with Anna Louise.

“We personalised her room with an old Sony radio, her music cassettes and a Parker Knoll chair.

“It dawned on me that I had my mother’s sewing machine and knew that it was never going to get used again.

“The next morning it went into the boot of the car and down to Moorehall Lodge where it soon became a communal piece for everyone in Suaimhneas.

“That was the absolute turning point for me. The day I knew that we were part of a loving community.

“Over time, I felt that my mother became much happier and there were certainly more positive comments on the back end of her journey.

“I started to hear less of ‘what am I doing here’ and more of ‘they are very nice here’ or ‘the place is very clean’.

“The household really came alive with the Butterfly approach and the staff came up with great ideas to make lives more interesting.

“They brought in a quiet area which was ideal for my mother and was a great positive in her life.

“I thought that her love of art appreciation would carry through to the art classes but when I stopped and thought about it I knew that her interest had waned and she was quite happy to sit in the armchair next to everyone.

“In the latter part of her journey, my mother eventually lost a lot of her capabilities and ceased to recognise us.

“It was a long road which took us to the edge on more than one occasion – we really started saying goodbye in 2013.

“I am convinced that if she hadn’t been in Moorehall Lodge Ardee with the care and attention that she was given she would not have lived a fraction of the last four years of her life.

“At the end, we were treated so well. The respect, the love, the care from start to finish was beautiful.

“My mother passed away on December 12, 2016 –we were invited to the staff Christmas mass where they all said their individual goodbyes to my mother as she reposed in the oratory.

“I really didn’t want to leave the other residents that we had got to know over the years, so Ann and I continue with our regular Saturday afternoon routine with one or other of us going up to Moorehall Lodge Ardee

“It is easier for us that we are only up the road. Moorehall Lodge is as much a part of our life in Ardee as the main street or the shops.

“In a small way, our journey continues.”

Following an inspection by Dementia Care Matters from the UK last month, both Households were awarded a Level 1 ‘Quality of Life National Accreditation Award’, which scores a home as providing exceptional person centred dementia care.

Only 1% of over 700 centres assessed through the UK score a Level 1. So, we are incredibly proud and delighted that our teams’ approach is being acknowledged internationally.