Aged Advisor reviews for Avonlea Dementia Care

Services offered

Psychogeriatric
Geriatric
Dementia care
Medical Hospital care
AGED CARE

Service Information

This business is part of Dementia Care NZ.

The website for Avonlea Rest Home Dementia Care (located in Addington, Christchurch) states that: "We welcome new residents and enjoy getting to know them. People are encouraged to continue with familiar roles and remain involved in the running of their home."

It continues to say that: "Our residents enjoy a wide range of activities, outings and community involvement. Family become part of the community we have and we encourage their continuing involvement in their loved ones' lives. We have several programmes available for family support."

The services that Avonlea Dementia Care include: "Residential capacity for caring for 64 people. This is achieved by the division of the facility into 6 separate homes. All of the homes differ slightly in design, which gives the feeling of entering a different environment with a unique character. Each one has an open plan kitchen/dining room/lounge area. This is in keeping with New Zealand house design and replicates the interior of many homes."

It also says that: "Residents are able to access the kitchen area, and residents are able to take part in homely activities such as sweeping the floor, wiping down the benchtop or drying the dishes.
Diversional therapists often conduct cooking activities with residents in these kitchen areas, and the smell of fresh baking often greets visitors on arrival."

No. of Bed 75

not currently taking enquiries

(Last Updated: 13th November 2023)

Reviews / Feedback for Avonlea Dementia Care

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Avonlea Dementia Care

4 Reviewed by : [Name withheld at users request] Jun 2016

Visitor. 10 - 100 days / visits

"Grandma's home "

I really appreciate the staff at Avonlea making my Grandmother feel at home. When I visit I am offered a cup of tea and my Grandmother seems to feel like it's a natural environment for us to chat. O...Read more

Pros

I really appreciate the staff at Avonlea making my Grandmother feel at home. When I visit I am offered a cup of tea and my Grandmother seems to feel like it's a natural environment for us to chat. On most visits I have seen staff paying attention to the residents - singing, painting nails, massaging hands, interacting as best is possible for those with limited ability to communicate. I have seen the usual quality of visiting entertainers. I am not involved in the management side of things

Cons

N/A

Suggestions to Management or General Comment

Thanks for making this an extension of our family homes.

Categories	Rating
Quality of Care
Caring/Helpful Staff
Responsive Management
Trips/Outdoor Activities
Indoor Entertainment
Social Atmosphere
Enjoyable Food
OVERALL RATING

How do you know about this place?

I visit/visited there.

I have lived at / visited this facility for

More than 10 but under 100 days / visits

I last lived at / visited this facility

Within the last 12 months

Would you recommend this facility to a friend?

Yes

Avonlea Dementia Care

4 Reviewed by : kim510 Jun 2016

Visitor. < 10 days / visits

"Avonlea Dementia Care"

N/ARead more

Pros

N/A

Cons

N/A

Suggestions to Management or General Comment

-

Categories	Rating
Quality of Care
Caring/Helpful Staff
Responsive Management
Trips/Outdoor Activities
Indoor Entertainment
Social Atmosphere
Enjoyable Food
OVERALL RATING

How do you know about this place?

I visit/visited there.

I have lived at / visited this facility for

Less than 10 days / visits

I last lived at / visited this facility

Within the last 12 months

Would you recommend this facility to a friend?

Yes

Avonlea Dementia Care

1 Reviewed by : [Name withheld at users request] Apr 2016

Visitor. < 10 days / visits

"Possible placement of family member"

Includes reply from Avonlea Dementia Care

On entry to the facility we were very unsure as to where we should go. We walked to a lounge area where we found a staff member who went and got the person we needed to show us around. On initial visi...Read more

Pros

On entry to the facility we were very unsure as to where we should go. We walked to a lounge area where we found a staff member who went and got the person we needed to show us around. On initial visit the home looked sunny and the gardens were well cared for. There was poster stating the philosophy of the home which focused on respect of the residents.

Cons

[Parts of the home] smelt distinctly of urine. On asking questions about the home we were quite concerned about the information we were given in regards to the use of restraints. Do you use restraints? - Yes we might tie someones hand or arm to a chair if they were trying to smear [their face] or put their hands in their pants. We might also tie their waste to a chair if they were restless. We always check on them every 15 minutes. This caused us a great deal of concern.

Suggestions to Management or General Comment

We did appreciate the staff persons honesty. She answered all of our questions. This was a one off visit to assess if this might be a suitable home for our family member. We will not be considering Avonlea.

Moderators Comment:

This review has been fully vetted and deemed to be the honest opinion of a genuine reviewer.

Reply from Avonlea Dementia Care

Avonlea Dementia Care Ltd ("Avonlea") strongly objects to the contents of this review and believes it is based on false facts..

The allegations relating to restraint are of particular concern to us. Restraining people in the manner alleged would constitute physical abuse and would not take place in our organisation. We note that the reviewer did not actually see any of the conduct reported in the review. This is because it does not occur.

We also deny that any of our staff members would make such comments, which we find disrespectful, undignified and offensive. Avonlea are of the opinion that if a conversation did take place about restraint during the viewing of the facility, any comments made by its staff have been misinterpreted and taken out of context. However, unfortunately Avonlea has not been able to verify that a conversation took place, and if so which staff member was involved, as it has not been provided with the details surrounding the alleged discussion, despite several requests.

[Paragraph Removed by Admin].

Avonlea has 4 years Audit Certification, evidence of the very robust measures in place, including consumer and family feedback mechanisms. These are responsive and form the basis for service improvement. Internal and external audits are undertaken for a controlled, consistent review of all aspects of Avonlea's service delivery, governance, business, finance and quality, cultural and consumer responsiveness.

We are deeply disappointed that this review has been published and invite the reviewer to contact us directly to clarify the issues raised.

In regard to the specific issues raised in the review:

Smell of urine in the home

Aging people and people with dementia sometimes lose the capacity to interpret the signals that indicate a need to use the toilet. Sometimes this can lead to a resident inappropriately toileting. Avonlea follows a regular schedule for supporting residents to self-toilet where possible, and manages incidents where inappropriate toileting occurs in a respectful, timely manner, as well as following a regular cleaning and deodorising regime for the facility as a whole.

Restraint

Avonlea has robust strategies in place to minimise the use of any form of restraint. Strict assessment guides are adhered to before any resident is placed in restraint. Our Restraint Minimisation and Safe Practice policy and practices are routinely reviewed by auditing agencies acting on behalf of the Health and Disability services. Open and honest communication occurs with all families with regard to the progression of dementia and the implication this has on the use of restraint. Consent for restraint is obtained after discussion with the family, the GP and the registered nurse. All episodes of restraint are a maximum of 2 hours in duration and are closely monitored and well documented. Residents are at all times treated with respect and dignity while in restraint. Residents' hands or arms are never tied for any reason whatsoever. Restraint is most often used in the case of residents who have been assessed as being at a high risk of falling, who may at times be restrained to prevent falls and potential injury.

Categories	Rating
Quality of Care
Caring/Helpful Staff
Responsive Management
Trips/Outdoor Activities
Indoor Entertainment
Social Atmosphere
Enjoyable Food
OVERALL RATING

How do you know about this place?

I visit/visited there.

I have lived at / visited this facility for

Less than 10 days / visits

I last lived at / visited this facility

Within the last 12 months

Would you recommend this facility to a friend?

N/A

Avonlea Dementia Care

2 Reviewed by : Angela Feb 2016

Family member / Friend. < 10 days / visits

"Expensive, but nice stay."

My mother was only there briefly but the staff were lovely....Read more

Pros

My mother was only there briefly but the staff were lovely.

Cons

Unfortunately the room had a high surcharge as it was supposedly superior. We did not agree.

Suggestions to Management or General Comment

Hopefully the facility is now more pleasant.

Categories	Rating
Quality of Care
Caring/Helpful Staff
Responsive Management
Trips/Outdoor Activities
Indoor Entertainment
Social Atmosphere
Enjoyable Food
OVERALL RATING

How do you know about this place?

I have/had family/friends there.

I have lived at / visited this facility for

Less than 10 days / visits

I last lived at / visited this facility

More than 3 years ago

Would you recommend this facility to a friend?

N/A

Avonlea Dementia Care

4 Reviewed by : kim510 Nov 2015

Visitor. 10 - 100 days / visits

"4 Stars..."

Helpful staff.Read more

Pros

Helpful staff.

Cons

N/A

Suggestions to Management or General Comment

....

Categories	Rating
Quality of Care
Caring/Helpful Staff
Responsive Management
Trips/Outdoor Activities
Indoor Entertainment
Social Atmosphere
Enjoyable Food
OVERALL RATING

How do you know about this place?

I visit/visited there.

I have lived at / visited this facility for

More than 10 but under 100 days / visits

I last lived at / visited this facility

Within the last 12 months

Would you recommend this facility to a friend?

Yes

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DHB Audit Details

Further Rest Home Certification and Audits Information.

Avonlea Dementia Care
Canterbury District Health Board
Audit Certification period: 48 months (Very Good)
Certificate renewal date: 21st September, 2025
Auditor: Health and Disability Auditing New Zealand Limited
Click here to view latest audit findings

Why we have Rest Home Audits

All rest homes and aged residential care facilities are certified and audited to ensure they:

provide safe, appropriate care for their residents
meet the standards set out in the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001.

Types of audit and when they happen

Certification / Surveillance Audits
Certification audits happen every 1–4 years. After the audit, rest homes are certified for a set period of time (the exact length depends on how well the rest home performed at the certification audit). Once this time is up, the rest home must be re-audited and its certification renewed.
An unannounced spot audit (also called a surveillance audit) happens around the middle of a rest home’s certification period. The spot audit ensures progress has been made on outstanding areas identified in the earlier certification audit and that standards haven’t slipped.
In addition to audits, rest homes have to report to their DHB on how they are addressing issues found at audit. These improvements are then verified at the next audit event.
Other types of audit
Provisional audits happen when a provider purchases a certified rest home from another provider.
Partial provisional audits happen when a provider wants to add services to their certificate (eg, a rest home adding hospital-level care), when a new rest home is built, or when a provider adds capacity or reconfigures their services (eg, builds a new wing, upgrades rooms). Before 2014, audits for adding capacity or reconfiguring services were referred to as verification audits.
Ministry inspections
Rest homes may have unannounced inspections by the Ministry under the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001 in the event of a serious complaint.
DHB issues-based audits
DHBs can conduct issues-based audits under the Aged Related Residential Care Contract. For information on these audits please contact the relevant DHB.

Avonlea Dementia Care

Services offered

Service Information

Reviews / Feedback for Avonlea Dementia Care

DHB Audit Details

Why we have Rest Home Audits

Types of audit and when they happen

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