Pilot cookery lessons prove piece of cake for carers

Date Published: {J}

Not many men would embark on a cookery course at the age of 88, but that’s what Jack Totman did, when he learned to make, among other dishes, beef stroganoff, goulash and chicken à la king.

Fergal Redmond did a similar course at the relatively young age of 67, and was so enthusiastic about the baking aspect of it that he has since invested in a bread maker.

Jack, who lives in Newcastle in the city, and Spiddal based Fergal Redmond were part of an innovative scheme aimed at teaching male carers of all ages how to provide proper, well-balanced meals for the people they are caring for.

This pilot Nutrition and Cookery programme was run by the HSE West in partnership with the voluntary Carers Association and Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology.

It consisted of two courses, which allowed 24 men from all parts of Galway don their aprons in GMIT’s state-of-the art kitchens. This programme is the first of its kind in Ireland, explains Michelle Harrison, the Manager of the Carers Department at the HSE West.

A survey carried out in 2009 by the College of Psychiatry of Ireland showed that a significant amount of carers felt they needed help in the area of cooking and nutrition.

The importance of nutrition for older people is illustrated by the fact that older people, especially those with medical problems such as diabetes, have an increased risk of hospital admission. A cooking and nutrition programme would address that and – while it’s not possible to draw conclusions from a pilot study – courses like these could bring long-term benefits to the HSE by reducing pressure on hospital services.

For the pilot scheme, the organisers decided to focus on men, who might not have been involved in cooking until becoming carers.

“We wanted the course to be as practical and relevant as possible,” says Michelle, adding that the HSE and Carers Association rang 14 randomly selected male carers in Galway to find out what they wanted. From that, they drew up an eight-week plan.

Michelle then sent out information to some 200 male carers about the course. As it was a pilot scheme, she didn’t know what the response would be and was pleasantly surprised that a total of 40 wanted to take part.

Two courses took place this Autumn and there are hopes to do more next year.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.