Sign up to Care Pack initiative and send gift to nursing home resident

PEOPLE are being encouraged to spread some Christmas cheer to nursing home residents this year by signing up to the Care Pack initiative, where you avail of free post to send a gift to a resident.

The Kiltipper Woods Care Centre in Tallaght has taken part in Care Pack since it was set up in 2020, as a way of curbing isolation in nursing homes during the pandemic.

It has carried on every Christmas since then, with people registering for the scheme being assigned a resident from a care home and then availing of a free-to-nursing-homes post service by An Post.

Maire O’Farrell, the director of nursing at Kiltipper Woods, told The Echo that all of their long-term residents, of which there are 98, participate and she has seen the difference it makes to them.

“It makes a huge difference to them,” she explained.

“A lot of them would say that it’s nice that a stranger was thinking of them.

“It’s not so much about the gift itself, it’s the thought behind it that means the most to them.

“A lot of them really appreciate handmade things.

One lady got a picture drawn by a child in her care pack, with a letter about her family, and it meant a lot to her.

“It brightens them up and gives them a Christmas feeling. We have a few residents who don’t have family who come in regularly, and they usually like to get things like a stash of shower gels.”

The last day for care packs to be posted is December 15, and the staff at Kiltipper Woods will give the residents their gifts on Christmas Eve, when there will also be carol singers in the centre.

“It’s something we talk to the residents about in the days running up to Christmas and they see the gift boxes coming in,” said Maire.

“For them to know that a complete stranger has gone out, bought them a gift and posted it to them, it makes them feel a bit more valued and thought of.”

You can sign up to send a Care Pack online at carepack.ie, where you can select which county you would prefer to post to, and you will then be sent your giftee’s details.

Packages can be sent using An Post freepost for care homes, for items up to 1kg, or they can be hand delivered locally if the care facility agrees to it.