A specialist support centre to help rehabilitate people recovering from strokes is being officially opened in Liverpool on Friday 22 May.
Venmore Reablement Centre in Anfield offers intensive help and support to get people back on their feet so they can return home following a spell in hospital due to accident or illness, rather than ending up in a residential or nursing home.
The building features a gym with steps and walking bars for people to do strengthening exercises, along with a specially equipped kitchen and bathroom for them to regain confidence carrying out household and personal tasks.
A total of £750k has been spent transforming the building into a 24 bed unit and therapy centre where patients spend up to four weeks being helped back on to their feet and treated before leaving for home.
There is also a ‘falls clinic’ to support people to help people who have become frail, perhaps through a lack of nutrition, to rebuild their strength and balance. The centre also supports people who have had hip replacements and are recovering from broken limbs.
The investment in Venmore is part of the council’s £6 million ‘Transformation’ plan for services which has seen a number of Health and Wellbeing ‘hubs’ created to provide help and support for people with a range of conditions including dementia, physical and learning disabilities and sensory impairment.
Deputy Mayor and Cabinet member for adult social care, Councillor Roz Gladden, said: “This is a fantastic facility which enables us to join up with the NHS in getting people who have suffered strokes out of hospital as soon as they are ready to leave, and start the process of rehabilitation.
“Using reablement, we are able to give them really intensive help over a few weeks and get them into a position where they are mobile enough to move back home in safety and comfort with a care package where needed.
“We have an ageing population in Liverpool and all of the evidence shows there is going to be an increased need for this type of unit. We are completely transforming the way in which we provide support to people, so they can lead independent lives.”
Every bedroom at Venmore has been redecorated with new furniture and flooring installed, and a landscaped outdoor area has also been created.
Over the last 12 months, the reablement team across the city has supported around 830 people.
The council is also working with health partners to develop integrated assessments to make sure people do not have to undergo separate appraisals of their needs by different health and social care organisations.