Greetings,
I am going to walk you through a summary of an average day inside the Bethany House so you have the opportunity to experience what I do on a daily basis.
Typically I will start my shift at nine in the morning. As I walk through the doors of Bethany House I am greeted with many warm welcoming faces. From my observations, people are always happy early in the morning. After I exchange morning greetings to all the workers it is time for handover. Handover is when all the oncoming staff listen to a quick recap of everything that has happened in the house the night before. The night staff goes through every resident and describes what they have been doing or if they have seen them. After handover the night shift says a quick prayer over the houses, the residents, and over the oncoming staff. The night shift then leaves the house and the day shift officially starts. The day shift starts with a quick recap of everyone's jobs and duties for the oncoming shift, as well as a devotion and prayer over the house. Then it is time to complete wake ups. Staff have to knock on each person's door making sure they are awake and in good health. After wake ups the staff splits up and completes their assigned job duties for the morning. No two days are ever the same while working at the house. Within the morning, there are a variety of different things that you could be doing on a given day. However, more than likely you will be doing one of these four things listed:
Watching the Office- this involves answering the phone, completing paperwork, answering the door, and talking to residents as they come in and out of the building.
Flat Cleaning- you may assist the residents in cleaning there flat. This includes everything from the bathroom, hallway, lounge, and kitchen.
Cooking Lunch- more often than not, staff take turns cooking the meal. The most popular meals are burgers, baked potato, cold sandwiches, hot dogs, Scottish pies, bridies, sausage rolls, and pizza.
Taking Clients on errands- helping clients get to the places they need to be which includes doctors and housing appointments, or a variety of other errands they need help completing.
Transitioning into the afternoon, everyone in the house has lunch. There is always plenty of food to go around. An average lunch at Bethany House is always unique. Two of my favorite lunches so far have been the sausage rolls and lentil soup and loaded baked potato. After finishing lunch all the staff help clean up in the kitchen. There are always piles of dishes that need to be washed. Also, meals need to be properly stored for other residents that couldn't make it down for lunch. After lunch the staff gets split up into two teams. The first team goes on break at 12:45. While the first team is on there break the second team will watch the officer or continue to clean the kitchen. When the first team comes back from there break around 1:30 both teams meet up and talk about what still needs to get done in the afternoon that did not get done in the morning. At 1:30 there is also a small devotion for anyone in the house who would like to attend. After the small meeting team two gets to go on break at 2:00. Once all the breaks are completed their are many chores or things to be completed around the house. Some of these things are listed below:
Cooking Dinner- When feeding 28 people you need plenty of time to cook the meal. Usually staff starts cooking dinner around two or three in the afternoon. Something I think is unique and enjoy is that dinner is a three course meal.
Cleaning Rooms- If there are any vacancies you may have to complete a massive cleaning of the unit when it is fully vacant.
Watching the Office- This is the same as before, answering the phone, completing paperwork, answering the door, talking to residents as they come in and out of the building.
Taking Clients on Errands- Once again, helping clients get to the places they need to be doctors, housing appointments, or other errands that they need help with.
Going on Outings- I think this is a unique aspect; Bethany House wants the clients opportunities to be able to go to the cinema or hangout and do things like play football with other people in the community.
Transitioning later in the day, at 5:00 pm dinner is served. Similar to lunch there is always a plethora of food and mountains of dishes. After everyone is done eating and the kitchen is cleaned up its time for ‘team time’. Team time is full of conversation. This gives staff time to share the highs and lows of the day and what still needs to get done in the house. Also, there is always lots of tea served at this time. After team time staff will finish the odds and ends of what needs to get done before the shift ends. My nights are usually spent down in the pool room with the residents playing pool or table tennis. At 8:45pm the night shift staff arrives and now the rolls are reversed and the day shift staff gives the handover and day shift prays for the oncoming shift, the house, and all the residents. I hope you enjoyed reading through an average day in the life of a Bethany Support Worker.