Home Instead Senior Care Teams up with An Garda Síochána to Keep Seniors Safe

Given the increase in crimes against older people by bogus callers, Home Instead Senior Care is partnering with An Garda Síochána and sponsoring the provision of 300,000 bogus caller check cards to help older people feel safe.

Many people routinely employ door-to-door traders and repair people and unfortunately, some of these people carry out very little work and charge exorbitant amounts of money for their services. This is criminal behaviour and if you suspect bogus callers are in your area or are working in a vulnerable neighbour’s home, never hesitate in contacting the Gardaí immediately.

The initiative is supported by Home Instead Senior Care Waterford and according to Ray Power, Manager, Home Instead Senior Care, “It is a sad, but true fact of life that there are people out there who will take advantage of the elderly.  In many cases, seniors are seen as soft targets to extort money from by offering dubious and deceptive services.  We cannot stress enough the importance of checking the credentials of any service person who cold - calls to the door offering maintenance or repair services.”

“The provision of these bogus caller check cards will allow older people to feel more confident and secure in their own homes.  They are available from local GP’s and pharmacists across Waterford City and County.”

Genuine tradespeople will not be offended by any enquiries the Gardaí may make and may indeed welcome them. If an unknown person calls to the door, it is advised to give them a bogus caller check card to fill out their details. A genuine person will typically co-operate and not have a problem filling out the card and the older person will have peace of mind answering the door.

An Garda Síochána advise that the bogus caller check cards are used in the following manner:

• Look out the window

• Have a viewer fitted on your door

• Have a door chain fitted and keep the chain on

• Make sure your back door is locked before you go to the door

• Ask for ID – a genuine caller won’t mind

• Don’t be embarrassed to tell the caller to write and make an appointment

• The basic rule is: if you don’t know the person at your door, you shouldn’t let them in

• If anxious contact your local Garda station

Waterford on a plate!

25 restaurants collaborate to produce the essential guide to dining in Waterford – “Eat Waterford”

“EAT Waterford”, the definitive guide to dining in Waterford, puts the spotlight on the city as an exciting food tourism destination.

Launched this week, EAT Waterford offers locals and visitors alike a comprehensive insight into the world class dining experience available in the city and surrounds.  The informative guide provides details such as theme, price range, menu options, and accessibility on 25 Waterford restaurants.  The restaurants involved in the initiative range from classical French fine dining to traditional Asian cuisine and casual American style dining to time-honoured fresh Irish fayre.

EAT Waterford is the brainchild of Fiona McHardy, CEO of The Viking Triangle, Waterford’s cultural and heritage quarter.  Commenting on the launch of EAT Waterford, Fiona said, “This collaboration is an exciting example of the strength of co-working and what can be achieved by businesses who ordinarily compete with each other to attract visitors to our city.  In essence, the businesses, tourists and locals will all benefit."

“The seed, to form a coalition amongst local restaurateurs, was sown at the end of last year’s tourist season.  In partnership with the local tourist office, we gathered extensive feedback from visitors not only about their overall experience of Waterford, but also their experience of dining out in the city.”

“In the main the feedback was extremely positive, however there was no overall guide to inform them about all of the fantastic restaurants Waterford has to offer.  As a result, EAT Waterford came into being and we intend to let locals and visitors know about the array of great restaurants and talented chefs that Waterford has.”

Another area this collaboration is keen to promote is the role that local producers play.  All of the restaurants are ardent supporters of artisan producers and there is currently an exciting cohort of local producers who supply these restaurants in Waterford.  The home of the blaa, rashers and even the humble cream cracker has inspired a generation of producers of great meat, seafood, breads, vegetables, beer and spirits.

EAT Waterford is supported by Waterford City and County Council and Lar Power, Director of Economic Development, welcomed the initiative.  “It’s great to see businesses working together to promote the city, its food culture, its hospitality, its producers and ultimately its calibre of restaurants” he said.

“At a glance visitors can get a real feel for Waterford city and all that it has to offer.  The restaurants and hotels working on this initiative have proven that sharing a common goal and working together can only enhance the food offering of Waterford city as a whole.”

To find out more about the EAT dining experience visit http://eatwaterford.ie/ or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Whitfield Clinic partners with major health insurers

Mr. David Beirne, CEO Whitfield Clinic

If a venue in the South East stated it had 25,000 through its doors in 2014 you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a tourist attraction. However, this figure represents the number of patients that attended a private and independent hospital in Waterford.

These patients attended Whitfield Clinic for elective procedures, thus avoiding the main stream system, availing of their health insurance and proactively choosing Whitfield. 

This volume of elective work places Whitfield as a major player in healthcare in the South East of Ireland.

Whitfield Clinic, Waterford’s private healthcare facility, now partners with all the major health insurance companies, in order to provide the best level of health care to its patients.

Commenting on the partnership with the main health insurance providers, Mr. David Beirne, CEO, Whitfield Clinic, said, “Since Whitfield Clinic opened in 2006 we have strived to provide the best level of private patient care in the South East region. This standard of quality is endorsed by our CHKS accreditation and ISO 9001:2008 certification. We are the first private hospital in Ireland to achieve this prestigious dual award; it is something we are very proud of.  Our services are growing rapidly and along with 60 consultants, a further 300 medical, surgical and administrative professionals are employed here.”

Whitfield Clinic provides 40 private beds, a 24 bed day surgery unit, four operating theatres, an endoscopy suite and an oncology day ward.  Private health insurance customers can avail of the extensive range of services, all available to view on www.whitfieldclinic.ie.

Mr. Beirne added, “By partnering with the main insurance companies, VHI, Laya, Aviva and GLOHealth, anybody that has private health insurance can benefit from Whitfield’s resources to ensure their hospital experience is as comfortable as possible.”

“As all procedures carried out at Whitfield are elective, this reduces the waiting time to as little as one week for most procedures and an average inpatient stay of two or three nights.”

“Patients get invaluable peace of mind knowing exactly when they will be seen and when their procedure will be undertaken.  More often than not, it is this uncertainty that causes undue stress and anxiety to anyone who is unwell. That’s why by choosing Whitfield that uncertainty is alleviated.”

Whitfield Clinic also provides a wide range of diagnostic and support provisions including MRI, Ultrasound, X-Ray and CT, with almost 1,100 patients availing of these services last December alone.

To find out more about Whitfield Clinic and the Whitfield Radiotherapy and Cancer Treatment Centre, visit www.whitfieldclinic.ie or call 051 – 337400.