More Responsibilities for Caregivers? Embrace Kindness

It’s usually easier to train new people to the community than to update new training to those who have been doing their job their way for a length of time. That’s where Kind Dining® comes in. With skill, experience, and the new rules and regulations at hand, we will show your serving staff training and how it benefits them to increase their knowledge about their job that they haven’t needed before.

You can bring out the best in your serving staff, including your caregivers, by showing your own passion and appreciation when you see the residents’ positive responses to this improved personal care. When your residents spend 60% of their day looking forward to a social mealtime, they include thoughts of camaraderie from the staff as well as other residents. Everyone will bask in the glow of success when they see the change good training has wrought.

Your serving staff will notice the changes that increase the happiness and satisfaction of the residents, when they feel a bit more gratitude from the new training they receive.  They will know immediately that it is well worth pouring an extra cup of hot coffee as their caregiver. This small act performed with a smile and a pleasant comment brings warmth to the table and shows hospitality at its best.

When teamwork results from the new training sessions, you can encourage your serving staff to take ownership of their positions, share ideas on making small improvements that make a difference to the residents. Let them become leaders in the dining room, proud of their accomplishments. Make every effort to bring their suggestions into being as soon as possible to let them know you are listening. Praise, support, and reward their encompassing changing roles that are changing the dining room environment.

Our B♥ Kind® Tip: You have the power to make a big difference in resident satisfaction!

About Cindy Heilman

Cindy is the founder and owner of Kind Dining®, which she began in 2006. She’s traveled across the country and Canada working with and training senior living communities that want to create an exceptional dining experience for their residents and staff. In addition, she certifies select professionals in her Kind Dining® philosophy and provides tools, now in an eLearning format, that make learning stick and help people put insights into action. As a result of her work, clients often share their staff has a new sense of purpose, get along better and keep their focus and energy on what matters most. In fact, she wrote a book, Hospitality for Boomers on how to attract residents and keep good team members. In her free time, she enjoys walking Oregon trails and cheering on her favorite soccer teams, the Portland Thorns and Timbers.

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