Balhousie Care Group, a national leader in dementia care, has raised the bar once more, with two of its care homes achieving record levels of care.

Balhousie Rumbling Bridge in Kinross and Balhousie North Grove in Perth have achieved the care home group's best scores yet for dementia care, after displaying excellent staff communication and individualised activities for residents.

Each care home in the 25-strong group is tracked by a process called dementia mapping, which is integral to Balhousie Care Group's person-centred philosophy. Residents with dementia are closely observed over a period of about eight hours to monitor how they are treated, their demeanour, how they react to staff, and how they deal with different situations.

Balhousie Rumbling Bridge and Balhousie North Grove scored the highest yet in the group, beating a previous record held almost a year ago. Rumbling Bridge includes a purpose-built Huntington's unit, as well as the care home for the elderly.

Yvonne Manson, award-winning Dementia Nurse Consultant at Balhousie Care Group and a national leader in the field of dementia, said both care homes were "an absolute credit" to the group.

Yvonne, winner of two national awards for her work in the field of dementia, said: "Because of the nature of dementia mapping, I spend a lot of time watching things from a resident's point of view. It gives me an important insight into how our residents receive the care plans and dementia care practices we have in place, and what we need to do better.

"It was fantastic to see such a high level of choice being given, excellent communication skills, and a range of different activities going on, each adjusted to the needs of individual residents. Staff at both Rumbling Bridge and North Grove are an absolute credit to Balhousie Care Group, taking time to not only respond to residents' needs, but to treat them with dignity and respect."

www.balhousiecare.co.uk