Rimants is a person we support at our residential care home, Aykroyd Lodge. Before moving in with us, he lived a vibrant life, regularly going on adventures with his beloved wife. But during an evening walk home, Rimants life changed in an instant.
He was attacked and severely injured. Rimants feared for his life and the events of that night became difficult to piece together.
Rimants needed urgent treatment at hospital. He bravely battled through the coming days and remained stable. However, his injuries meant he’d suffered an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). This injury affected how one side of his body functioned. Rimants could no longer walk and needed to use a wheelchair.
With so many changes to his life, he was scared, confused, and faced a challenging road ahead. But with the support of his amazing wife and a positive attitude, Rimants didn’t give up.
When he was discharged from hospital, Rimants required full-time care and support to rehabilitate and regain independence. And when he and his wife discovered Voyage Care, a glimmer of hope was in sight.
Joining Voyage Care
Following a search for a suitable provider, a door opened at one of our specialist brain injury homes in the North East.
Before moving into the home, our team supported Rimants to gradually transition into the home. This involved Rimants and his wife meeting the team and slowly working up to visiting the home. Once Rimants felt comfortable, our specialist team ensured the home was the right fit for Rimants, conducting important care needs and environmental assessments.
Rimants eventually moved in, and our team started to support him with his rehabilitation pathway. He lived there for 16 years, until he was ready to begin a new chapter.
A new chapter
With our support, Rimants made incredible progress along his rehab pathway. The day soon came when he was embracing a new type of independence and was able to receive non-rehabilitation support!
Quickly, we found a suitable opportunity for Rimants at one of our residential homes, Aykroyd Lodge. We ensured Rimants made all the decisions about his move and where his future home would be. Once he was comfortable with the idea of moving to Aykroyd Lodge, his team visited and assessed his needs, ensuring their home was the right fit for him.
They introduced themselves and explained what the home was like. They then did a care needs assessment to learn everything about Rimants support needs. They discovered what his likes, dislikes and passions were.
A week later, Rimants visited our home and instantly connected with it. Our team took him on an exciting tour of the home, and he got a sneak peek of his new bedroom! Rimants knew in his heart this was the right environment for him. He instantly warmed to his housemates and new team, feeling right at home. He even began planning how he’d personalise his room!
Our team also did an environmental assessment to ensure the home had the right facilities for Rimants, including wheelchair access. They liaised with other people involved in his care, like his Social Worker, so they could understand his previous brain injury journey and his past needs. With their input and this additional information, we had everything we needed to ensure Rimants would thrive at Aykroyd Lodge!
Rimants never gives in and has embarked on an incredible journey. He’s gained so much confidence and now regularly visits the local community.
Catherine Keenan, Service Manager at Aykroyd Lodge
Adopting a person-centred approach
From the moment Rimants arrived, his team took the time to get to know him as an individual. Each day, they learned more about Rimants and what brings him joy.
Rimants created a special bond with his team. Together, they created a person-centred support plan. This was centred around his passions, interests, and goals.
They empowered him with decision making at every stage, communicating openly and honestly with him. Rimants is Latvian, so we translated his activity planners and food menus so he could understand everything.
We quickly discovered that Rimants was keen to get involved with cooking. When Rimants arrived, he could make sandwiches and cold food but was eager start cooking hot meals.
Rimants had also lost some confidence visiting the community but was determined to overcome this. His team gradually introduced small trips out to increase his confidence.
As Rimants did more activities, he began to blossom, and his personality and happiness shone through.
Accomplishing his goals
Since moving to Aykroyd Lodge, Rimants has come a long way.
One of the biggest breakthroughs was his newfound confidence in the community. At first, he was reluctant to venture out. Understanding how important this goal was to him, our team didn’t give up and gradually encouraged Rimants to consider a small trip out.
He eventually warmed to the idea, and his team reassured him they would keep him safe. Rimants and his team took a short journey to a restaurant for a bite to eat. This was a huge milestone for Rimants and marked the start of his confidence in the community increasing!
Now beaming with confidence, Rimants visits lots of exciting places. He goes to the cinema every week, eats out at restaurants, and plays bowls with his support team. Rimants is also a big animal lover, so his team planned a surprise trip to the zoo and a farm. On the day, Rimants couldn’t contain his excitement and met lots of furry friends – he even got to feed the horses!
He’s also become an excellent cook. With the help of his team, he’s learned new skills in the kitchen. He’s now able to help his team prepare food and, with guidance, he uses the oven and air-fryer to cook hot food!
We’re excited to see what tasty recipes he whips up in the future.
Looking to the future
Since the day he was attacked, to finding new independence at Aykroyd Lodge, Rimants’ confidence has blossomed. He’s already achieved many of his goals, but Rimants isn’t stopping there! He’s set some new goals that we’ll support him to achieve.
One of those goals is to develop his writing skills. When Rimants suffered his brain injury, writing became more challenging for him. Rimants isn’t giving up though and has set his sights on eventually writing a Valentines Day card for his wife!
Rimants also wants to build up his strength so he can attempt some walking in the future. His support team will be by his side all the way when he’s ready.
Another goal is to eventually take part in a skydive! This is a big ambition but he’s confident that, with our support, he can achieve anything he sets his mind to!
Find out more about our specialist support!
Learn more about how we can support you, a loved one, or a client to live their best lives. Complete our quick and easy enquiry form and a member of our team will be in touch!