Activities make up the most important part of all our days and at Simblija Residential Care Home we ensure a variety that reflects the interests and capabilities of all the residents we support. We believe in setting achievable aims and encouraging people to continue with as many everyday tasks as possible in order to improve self-confidence and maintain independence.
Life at Simblija
Chapel of the Resurrection
A purposely designed chapel is also found within Hilltop Gardens Retirement Village which is accessible from Simblija Residential Care Home. This is a beautiful water chapel lying in a serene part of the village. It provides a peaceful sanctuary for residents and visitors alike.
Daily mass will be said here and we shall also hold traditional church calendar functions, in order for residents to be able to enjoy and participate just like they did when they were at home within their own parishes.
Rehabilitation/Aquatic Therapy Centre
Our objective is that of offering an ideal and pleasant environment for rehabilitation, either on an individual or group basis, as the needs may arise.
Within the Residential Care Home lies the rehabilitation aquatic centre including a state of the art physiohydrotherapy pool. This comprehensive rehabilitation centre is designed to help seniors maintain and improve quality of life by maximizing functional independence. We offer skilled rehabilitation services by highly trained professionals in specifically designed environments, complimented by domiciliary and out-patient physiotherapy as required. Our principal aim is to enhance quality of life at all stages by focusing on our residents’ daily activities and functions – we offer individualized attention to help residents do what they wish to do and achieve what they wish to achieve, in relation to an extensive roster of situations that include:
- neurological, orthopaedic, cardiac, and pulmonary rehabilitation,
- strength, flexibility and coordination training,
- pain management,
- massage and exercise therapy,
- balance and gait training,
- fall prevention,
- individual supervised and independent programs,
- exercise groups,
- aquatic therapy and water aerobics,
- health education
The fully accessible rehabilitation centre has been professionally planned and equipped to offer the highest standards of clinical care and fitness in terms of physiotherapy and aquatic therapy. The spacious rehab gym/physiotherapy hall with vinyl flooring, is fully outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment whilst also allowing for a hands-on approach, and offers the option of private rehab clinic rooms right next door.
The aquatic therapy area is unique in being the only one in the Maltese islands to be custom built for rehabilitative purposes, with additional focus on use by a senior population. Residents can access the pool area by passing through calibrated temperature zones that allow the body to shift from the outside environment to a warmer pool area temperature. The benefits of aquatic therapy in warm water in the large variable depth pool can also be fully enjoyed. This is accessible through a dignified gently sloped ramp, or benefit from immersion in either of the purpose built walk-in warm or cooler temperature single person baths.
Everything, from an extensive array of equipment and floats to a solid in-pool perimeter railing, is designed with the residents’ safety and comfort in mind. Our objective is that of offering an ideal and pleasant environment for rehabilitation, either on an individual or group basis, as the needs may arise.
The Dining Experience
Food and drink are an enjoyable and essential part in all our lives. We have given this a lot of thought and planned it to be an enjoyable experience at Simblija Residential Care Home. Our dedicated, purposely built in house kitchen lead by our own Head Chef ensures every meal is not only delicious but reflects each individual’s likes, dislikes and dietary needs.
Whatever the meal, Simblija Residential Care Home’s policy is to make sure that every meal is nutrionally balanced and made from the freshest ingredients. Menus within the Residential Care Home are specifically designed to meet the nutrional needs of our residents. Our in house kitchen will be providing nutritious, fresh homely meals which our residents can choose on a daily basis. Our Chef will consult with our residents in order to see that their personal tastes are being accommodated. Meals will also be tailor made for residents if they suffer from any particular allergy or medical condition. All recipes have been evaluated by our dietician and calorific value determined. Our speech language pathologist is also consulted when residents are seen to require certain assistance in feeding or certain food consistency.
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner all offer selections of hot and cold meals. A menu to choose from is circulated usually a week in advance and we are pleased to cater to any dietary or cultural requirements our residents might have. Simblija Residential Care Home will also provide special catering for events such as Christmas, and host themed dining experiences throughout the year. Our social calendars include weekly happy hours and monthly high teas.
Residents will be encouraged to eat in our luxurious dining room, in the company of others and in the knowledge that they are being supervised if anything happens. However being fully aware of the need of certain amount of privacy and comfort, we do offer our residents the opportunity to have breakfast in the comfort of their own room.
Activities & Recreation
It is our desire that residents live a full and active life and we therefore encourage participation in daily activities in order to promote physical, mental and social well-being. This is based on our philosophy of active ageing of both the body and the mind. By keeping active our residents will fill up their day with meaningful activity, which will give them the opportunity to socialise and interact.
For this reason the Care Home will also have a dedicated leisure and lifestyle activity coordinator who will be responsible for the planning of activities and outings for our residents with an aim to stimulate our clients’ mind and lift their spitits.
The leisure and lifestyle activity coordinator will work together with onsite team of professionals as well as other community groups to plan outings for residents. This could include a trip to the movies, a bus trip to the Naxxar Village, shopping at the grocery or a spiritual attendance
All group and individual activity is designed to not only mentally and physically stimulate the people we care but to enhance their life skills and feelings of purpose and self-worth.
Popular activities include:
- Baking
- Arts and craft
- Cards, word and other games
- Entertainers
- Visits from local schools and nurseries
- Exercise and movement
- Gardening
- Research work using computers
- Trips and visits to outings through organised transport
- Music Therapy
- Drama groups
- Educational seminars