Presentation by Federico Mazzoleni (chief doctor)
- In 2016 We choose to go beyond the usual philosophy of the house, we seek something broader.
- The aim was to provide a new vision, to shift the focus to another, important aspect that until then had received little attention : the whole person. Different methods were being evaluated : Gentecare, Montesori, Validation
- Eventually the choice fell on Validation. When asked why Validation specifically? Mr. Mazzoleni replied that knowing the caregivers, it seemed to him to be the most suitable method
- 02.2016 Basic training of all Care Staff; (two-day training to allow everyone in the care sector to understand which direction they wanted to go).
- 2016: Training of a Validation Worker (Selam); Selam started working mainly taking care of the people who were giving the most trouble to caregivers. Soon we realized that there was a lack of continuity , to provide care during the most at-risk periods (mornings and evenings) we changed shifts for the Validation Worker.
- 09.2017 Start of first shift: Validation Worker from h.7:00-12:00/16:00-19:00 with monthly coverage of 50%; in agreement with Selam, a split shift is proposed to cover the two most critical parts of the day. Selam is taken off the ‘care staff to start with a 50% Validation shift; this was not easy as we did not have an extra staff member but the work had to be redistributed. There was a lot of resistance from both nurses and caregivers. In fact Selam is given a new role with a new uniform, specific tasks with regular individual Validation interventions. Selam tells how the support of the head nurse was crucial, for his part Mr. Mazzoleni also had the support of the management. He recounts how he realized that Selam was successful with Validation when during an in-take, the nurses did not know how to deal with the situation without Selam. It was clear that one worker alone was not enough so it was decided to train another Validation worker. Not everyone can do everything, as a care manager it was important to choose the right people, as people have to believe in what they do and also be ready to overcome hardships and resistance (Francesco receives training).
- 09. 2018 coverage from Monday to Friday with two Workers: (Selam and Francesco). Validation shifts were provided Monday through Friday with 8-hour split shifts. The Senior Home expands, 20 more beds are created, for a total of 52 beds. So the small Validation team still needs to be expanded and a new roster evaluated. Selam becomes group leader and also takes care of two Validation groups per week. In order to decide which residents should be validated, the Validation Worker starts at 6:45 a.m. for the handover from the night shift and assesses which residents have been having problems, and then passes the handover at 7:00 a.m. to the Validation Worker on duty (Federica begins Validation training).
- 10.2019 Greater demand for coverage during the day, shift change to a 10 hour shift h.7:00-12:30/14:30-19:00 with coverage of the entire month (Selam, Francesco, Federica). Working 10 hours entails more leave but also allows to return to the care team and operate within the team while adapting to changes. The team is close-knit and motivated, but the needs are growing especially in the evenings and sometimes at night, new solutions are sought for weekends and holidays; an excellent opportunity presents itself: October 2021 two women who have just finished the Validation Worker course are hired into the Validation team ( Miriam and Stefania).
March 2022 shift coverage from 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, weekend coverage with 10-hour shifts. Validation team also does nights to have a 360 degree view . Selam takes the Level 3 training. It has been 6 years since the beginning, now when the new staff arrives, it is already clear that there is Validation Worker, the great resistance has diminished: it has been a long way , changes need time and you have to believe in what you are doing.
