Respite Care in Poole

Poole • Dorset

Short-term and emergency respite care in Poole

Caring for a loved one is rewarding, but it is also relentless, and everyone needs a break. Respite care from Protocol Healthcare Services gives family carers in Poole the chance to rest, go on holiday, catch up on their own health, or simply have a few days off, knowing that their relative is safe and well looked after at home. Because our Bournemouth office is only a few miles from the town, we can put cover in place quickly, from a short daily visit to full live-in respite, across neighbourhoods from Hamworthy and Poole Old Town to Broadstone and Canford Cliffs.

Respite is not just for planned breaks. Life does not always give notice: a carer can be taken ill, called away, or worn down to the point where they simply cannot continue for a while. We provide emergency respite too, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays, so there is always someone to step in. Our nearest office is in Bournemouth, at Regus Oxford Point, 19 Oxford Road, BH8 8GS, and we cover Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch. Every Care Professional we place is enhanced-DBS and right-to-work checked, referenced and trained before they start, so you can hand over with real confidence.

When respite care helps in Poole

• ✓ A planned holiday or weekend away
• ✓ A carer's own operation, illness or recovery
• ✓ Emergency cover at short notice
• ✓ Recovery after a hospital stay or operation
• ✓ A regular, recurring break to avoid burnout
• ✓ Trying care at home before a longer arrangement
• ✓ Visiting respite for a few hours or live-in cover
• ✓ Continued medication, personal care and routines

Visiting respite or live-in respite

Respite in Poole comes in two main shapes, and we will help you choose. Visiting respite means a Care Professional covers set calls through the day, giving the regular carer a few hours to themselves, whether that is a round of golf, a hospital appointment of their own, or an afternoon by the harbour. Live-in respite means a Care Professional stays in the home day and night, providing full round-the-clock cover so you can take a longer holiday or step back entirely for a while. Both keep the person in their own home in Parkstone, Penn Hill, Creekmoor or wherever they live, with familiar routines intact.

Recovery and hospital-to-home respite

Respite is often at its most valuable straight after a hospital stay or an operation. A period of short-term care can carry someone through the first fragile weeks at home while a family carer recovers their own strength. We regularly support people discharged from Poole Hospital, run by University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust, and from the Royal Bournemouth Hospital nearby, helping with medication, mobility, personal care and rehabilitation, and keeping GPs and district nurses informed so nothing is missed.

The NHS and council may first offer reablement, free short-term help with everyday tasks that usually lasts up to six weeks (NHS guidance). When it finishes, we can step in.

Keeping routines going while you rest

Good respite should feel seamless to the person receiving it. Our Care Professionals take time to learn the small things that matter, the favourite chair, the usual walk around Poole Park, mealtimes, medication and bedtime routine, so the days run as normally as possible while the main carer is away. We keep families updated throughout, and where a longer arrangement is wanted afterwards, respite can flow naturally into regular visiting or live-in care with the same familiar faces.

Is respite at home right, or a short care-home stay?

Respite can also mean a short stay in a care home, booked with the home or the council. We do not run care homes; we arrange respite at home. A care home may suit better if someone needs nursing care on site. The NHS guide to carers' breaks and respite care lists other options, and our respite care overview and respite care guide compare them.

Funding and regulation in Poole

The regulator is the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Protocol Healthcare Services Ltd holds CQC registration for personal care, provider ID 1-6591402702. We have not been inspected yet, so no rating has been published. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council can carry out a carer's assessment and a care needs assessment that may lead to funded respite, and many families choose to self-fund short breaks. We are always happy to explain how the routes fit together and to arrange cover at short notice. If the council funds respite, you can take it as a direct payment and book the care yourself, including with us. You can read more on our paying for care guide, or see the full range of our services.

Areas of Poole we cover for respite care

We arrange respite care across the town and the surrounding BH postcodes, including:

• Poole Old Town
• Poole Quay
• Parkstone
• Lower Parkstone
• Upper Parkstone
• Branksome
• Canford Cliffs
• Sandbanks
• Penn Hill
• Lilliput
• Hamworthy
• Oakdale
• Creekmoor
• Broadstone