Historic and current facts about our Hamilton Nursing Home

Hamilton Nursing Home is situated in Surbiton, within the royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. It is in a beautiful location at the heart of prestigious Southborough conservation area. Our building is full of attractive Victorian character, befitting the era in which it was built, and its surrounding areas are steeped in history including the famous coronation stone used in the coronation of Saxon kings.  Today, our historic residence boasts outstanding facilities and a unique approach to caring for your loved ones offering residential, nursing, dementia, respite, and palliative round-the-clock care. Here are some historic and current facts about our Hamilton Nursing Home that you may not know…

1. Our stunning landscaped garden is more important than you may think. Hamilton is an old Victorian property, and we use the space well. We’ve got a beautiful wheelchair-friendly garden and a dementia-friendly garden surrounding our 38-bedroom home. Our dementia garden is a specially designed outdoor space that aims to support those living with dementia. The garden is carefully planned to provide a safe, stimulating, and calming environment that will enhance a resident’s overall well-being. We’ve incorporated a variety of sensory elements, such as colourful flowers, fragrant plants, wind chimes, and bird feeders to help engage multiple senses, promote relaxation, and trigger positive, familiar memories.  There are lots of strategically placed rest areas to allow residents to observe and enjoy the surroundings as well as encourage social interaction with other garden visitors.  We also have a gardening trolley where we pot all our compost and seedlings. This trolley can be wheeled around to the residents that are unable to leave their rooms so they can engage in gardening too.

2. A full spectrum of round-the-clock care. Residential, nursing, dementia, respite, and palliative care are available 24/7 by our professional care team.

3. We enjoy close community links. Our activity leads ensure a stimulating social activity programme is available for all residents, regardless of their ability levels. We enlist the help of our local community to help us achieve this. In doing so we have built up a strong connection with local businesses and the local community. We are often recognised and greeted when we are visiting Box Hill to watch the horses, or when out on a morning trip by the river in Mosely as we’re feeding the ducks and enjoying ice cream. We often frequent the local pub for a drink with the locals and to enjoy the lovely view from the pub garden or have a stroll around Chessington Garden Centre.  We also connect with local performers, singers, piano/accordion players, and DJs to come and entertain the residents regularly. Father Joseph from our local church regularly visits us and we also enlist the help of local businesses for some of our activities. For example, the local florist supplies us for our flower arranging afternoons, and Kingston Library generously allows us to borrow library books for the residents who enjoy reading.

4. We use pets as therapy. Not only do we allow residents to bring their pets into Hamilton, but we also organise animal assisted therapy visits where trained animals provide emotional support and companionship to individuals with various health conditions, including dementia. This therapy has shown numerous benefits for people living with dementia by improving their overall well-being and quality of life. The below image shows Ellie and Nealy on a recent visit to Hamilton. Nealy is one of our therapy dogs and the residents really enjoy her visits.

5. Hamilton is surrounded by green space and steeped in history and heritage. Nearby Kingston is known as the coronation site of as many as seven Saxon kings and has been regarded by some as the birthplace of England. Many relics from its rich history can still be sighted, including London’s oldest bridge, Clattern Bridge, and the coronation stone (found outside the Guildhall) purportedly used in the coronation of Saxon kings. Our local town, Surbiton, also dates to the Saxon period but has since become known for its standout pieces of art deco architecture, including its Grade II listed railway station.

6. We assess our residents before they arrive and tailor their care accordingly. Before we take on a new resident at Hamilton, we conduct a pre-assessment to ensure that we are able to offer the best possible care and support during their stay with us. We try and get the best picture that we can of the resident – their likes, dislikes, and potential stress triggers. We then go out of our way to plan and deliver a bespoke care offering for them. We offer them their favourite drink on arrival, we make sure their room feels homely using pictures and photographs they may remember. We offer a varied activity programme at Hamilton and our pre-assessments of residents helps us determine which type of activities would be beneficial and enjoyable to them.  Hamilton Home Manager, Andrea Day, adds: “When I go to assess a new resident and ask about their life and their passions, a common response from their loved one is often ‘my mum used to be so social and active but now she just lays in bed all day, or she won’t talk anymore’. However, when a resident comes into our care environment, we often bring out and experience a completely different side. Residents get to know us, and they get to trust us. One lady who joined us recently used to paint in her heyday but had not done so in a very long time. She made some beautiful Poppy paintings with the Lifestyle Lead, and her family couldn’t believe that she was up and about and participating in painting and just really enjoying her life late into her 90s”.

7. We’re an award-winning team. Our care giving team are not short of an award or two. Most recently, we had four finalists for the Future Care Group at the Stars of Social Care awards, three of which were from Hamilton Nursing Home.  Our Clinical Deputy Manager, Shantel Booth Da Costa, was a finalist in “The Exceptional Care Home Nurse Award”. Our Team Leader, Mona Safaryan, won “The Care Home Nutrition Award”, and our Regional Senior Business Administrator, Aaron Yap, won “The Awesome Ancillary Worker Award”.  Go team Hamilton!

8. We have a dedicated and unique approach to those living with dementia. Each of our 18 homes house residents that are living with some form of dementia. Some early stage, some mid-stage, and some who are living with very advanced dementia and transferring into the end stages of their condition. So, our dementia strategy is vital for us to plan and execute successfully. We have formed our dementia approach around five key pillars. Read all about our dementia strategy here.

9. 3 of our staff have received long service awards. With so many long-standing members of staff, our Nursing home is a great place to live and work. Our residents build great relationships with staff, helping to establish mutual trust. This is particularly important for residents with dementia where consistency and routine are comforting. To date, three of our staff have received long service awards.

10. Our in-house chef tailors meals to personal preference and nutritional needs. Having a chef on-site means that we can welcome residents with their favourite meals and tailor food to their needs. For example, people with dementia sometimes lost their appetite – they don’t remember what hunger is or they don’t realise they are hungry. Often, dementia residents will anxiously walk around non-stop, so may do better with finger foods that are designed to keep their energy levels up and maintain their weight levels. These can be offered at regular intervals throughout the day rather than providing three big meals at set times.

Keep abreast of all the fun at our Hamilton Nursing Home by following our Hamilton Nursing Home Facebook page. Better still, why not pay us a visit and witness our quality care offering with your own eyes.