Home-style dining experience brought into aged care

The project was crafted with the vision of replicating the home comforts that residents were used to before moving into an aged care setting.

Chef manager Richard Stone has been working in the aged care sector for 10 years and finds great reward in meeting the needs of residents.

"I just like to see that residents are enjoying a homestyle meal and that they're able to live a fulfilled life, just keeping everything as it would be at home as much as possible," he said.

Richard said it started with assessing the needs of residents.

"The process begins with the Food Focus meetings and the resident meetings that we have; getting some ideas about what they'd like to see in the dining room and also around the service that they would like to get, and how they would like things to be run - so the initial consultation phase," he said.

Richard said this project was particularly important in bringing families back into the centre following COVID-19 restrictions in aged care settings.

"I think from a wellbeing perspective for the residents, and you know from a mental health perspective as well, having families be able to come in and enjoy what's a normal part of most people's lives; enjoying a meal with families is quite a big deal.

"The feedback from the residents and families has been nothing short of amazing. "They absolutely love it; they couldn't speak highly enough of it."

Hospitality service manager Lainie Lynch said the project had been a long-term vision for her.

"I've always wanted to see the dining experience and the food experience go hand-in-hand," she said.

Lainie said the centre started by setting up the family table space and using items from home renovation and charity stores.

"The residents love the idea and some of the families really liked that we also had a children's table and chairs with books," she said.

"It all comes back to the residents by making sure we're meeting their needs and having time with their family."