Cramond Residence

General Manager of Cramond Residence

I support the General Manager with the running of Cramond Residence and I work at his side to lead and manage the care team.

I’m responsible for providing high-quality and safe care and for monitoring its delivery. I also supervise and support the care team, maintain a safe environment for residents, staff and visitors, and ensure that the Residence complies with the National Care Standards, NMC code of conduct and the requirements of the Care Inspectorate.

I participate in the recruitment and selection of staff and I actively promote the Residence’s objectives – with a view to driving forward the continuous improvement and development of the service we offer, in cooperation with the Management Team.

On a daily basis, I work closely with our charge nurses to manage the various unit teams. My priority is that all residents get the highest possible quality of care.

Can you tell us a little about yourself and your background?

I’m originally from Italy, where I qualified as a nurse in 1997 (I have a Master's Degree in nursing education and management). I also studied Human Resources at university and obtained a second degree in this discipline.

In my career in my home country, I worked in a number of different hospitals and on a range of specialist wards, so I have experience of many types of clinical care.

I came to Scotland with my husband just a few years ago, as we both felt that we wanted to experience a new country and a new culture. We also wanted to improve our English. Since we’ve been here, we’ve been blessed with the arrival of a daughter – a wonderful gift. We love living in Edinburgh, we even love the weather here – the summer in Italy is just too hot!

I started working in the care sector in Scotland as a Unit Manager in 2012 and I have been a Deputy Manager since 2020, just before the pandemic hit. This meant that my last few years working in care have been at a very challenging time, but this has also meant that I have learnt a lot. I began work here at Cramond Residence as Deputy Manager early in 2022.

What do you most like about working at Cramond Residence

I like to make a real difference to people’s lives, especially to elderly people. That’s why I like the fact that Cramond Residence is really focused on providing a high quality of life. Because of this, the Residents are treated as individuals with respect, compassion, honesty and dignity.

In addition, having studied both nursing and human resources at university, I am very pleased that I can combine these two passions and interests in my current job.

At Cramond Residence, we use Personalised Care Plans, as we value people and actively involve them in the planning of their care. This means that every care plan is unique and specific for each person.

To deliver these plans, every single member of the staff works together to achieve the goal of high-quality care and I’m very excited to be part of this great team. We have staff who come from many different backgrounds and who have a wide range of skills – I love to support them in their work, promote their growth and help them succeed.

I also like the tailored training supplied at Cramond Residence, which is definitely one of the key reasons why we are able to achieve excellence in the care we provide.

What motivates you?

I really believe that enhancing people’s quality of life is the most important aspect of the job we do here at Cramond Residence, and that it is how we can make a vital difference in residents’ lives.

What makes people happy can be highly subjective, this is why it is extremely important to actively listen to residents. That’s why we provide an integrated care approach and work as a multidisciplinary team, involving residents, next of kin, GPs, care assistants, nurses, physiotherapists, hospital at home teams, dietitians, etc. This is what really motivates me.

When I worked in hospitals the majority of the people only remained in the wards for a short period of time. At Cramond Residence, I can get to know the residents I look after and help them to live a dignified life. It is wonderful to be able to share their memories, experiences, wishes and expectations.

What else do you like about Cramond Residence?

I really appreciate the fact that Cramond offers residents such a beautiful environment in which they can relax and go about their days.

When it comes to quality of life, I also think that activities are very important. We are therefore working hard to continually improve and enhance the range of events, activities, hobbies and outings that we offer.

Food is another vital part of this jigsaw. For me food should not just be about nutrition (although this is very important) it should also be delicious and enjoyable and mealtimes should be something that people look forward to. At Cramond, we offer delicious food in high quality surroundings. We have lovely cups, plates, cutlery and napkins – it’s little things like this that help people feel more appreciated and more respected.

Are there any aspect of the job that are challenging?

Everything at Cramond Residence works very smoothly because we have some excellent management tools in place, including electronic systems that manage the delivery of medication and the implementation of care plans. However, because these were new systems to me, there was a steep learning curve when I started to use them. Luckily, I had excellent training and everyone was by my side to help me work things out.

Heads up the sales and marketing team for Cramond Residence

I deliver care to our residents, but also make sure that my team of nurses and carers have the right knowledge, skills and experience, so that, together, we do what’s best for the residents and their families. My job therefore involves a fair bit training and, crucially, making sure that staff put their training into practice. If you were to give me a specific label, you would probably describe me as an end of life care specialist. It’s a job I love – I’ve been giving care for over 42 years as a nurse.

Nursing care is quite complex, particularly when you’re supporting residents living with dementia, because you have to think about each individual’s emotional wellbeing, their physical wellbeing, and the fact that the disease process means that one day can be very different to the next. So you have to be able to go with the flow. If it’s a good day for the resident, you should make the most of it, if not, you have to draw on your expertise to help make sure they’re as comfortable as possible.