residents of the Continuing Care Unit at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital are ignored by their loved ones over the holiday season.

Administrators at the hospital facility have expressed concern that during this time of happiness and giving, some residents are not receiving the influx of family visitors they should around this time of year.

"That's been our challenge for the last few years now,'' said Kathy-Ann Lewis, programme manager at the Continuing Care Unit. "I don't know what is wrong with our families.

"They think they can just leave their families here and that's it. Some people just don't care.'' Ms Lewis explained the 105 residents at the Continuing Care Unit are there because their families have exhausted all options of being able to care for their loved ones in a home environment.

And Ms Lewis believed that it is important for families of the residents to take an active role in their care and emphasised regular visitation was a key ingredient.

She pointed out that families should not just show up around holiday and birthday times, but throughout the year.

"We try to work together as a team,'' Ms Lewis explained. "But we can't do it without the families.'' Olita Smith, a nurse in the facility for 30 years, agreed. She said she has seen patients come and go and there is a common theme -- that families are not as supportive of the patients as they could be. And Ms Smith admitted that at times her job can tug at her emotions.

"We know you (the families) care,'' she said, "But it should be year round.

Show a little love to them. Come in and visit them and kiss them on the cheek or touch their hand. It's unfair. They should be around their family at Christmas time.

"We try to make it as homey as possible, but there is nothing like home. You really have to have love in your heart for this type of job.'' Ms Lewis said the facility has a programme that allowed the residents to go out for several hours of the day to spend time with their family on Christmas Day, but said not all families take advantage of the programme.

"We have a system in place where we would provide transportation for the residents so they can be with their family over the holidays,'' she said.

"Christmas is a day we ask them to come in and take them for a couple of days.'' Administrators noted that there is in-home nursing care provided for people who choose to take their relatives home.

Residents of the facility say that they are content with the care they receive, but admit they would like to see more of their family.

Alone for Christmas "It's very nice here,'' said resident, Doris Wellman. "But there is no place like home. What family I have, my sister and my daughter, they come. I am hoping to go home for Christmas.'' Ms Lewis explained she did not want to lay all the blame at the feet of the family, because she understands people have busy lives and schedules.

"I know that people are working sometimes two and three jobs,'' she said.

"But we suggest a rota. Some family members can come and do lunch to assist with the feeding. It would be nice if they came in and had meals with their family.'' However, she believed families who have their relatives in the facility are in a sense of denial and do not want to face the reality of the situation.

And Ms Lewis noted that people needed to think seriously about the quality of life when they get older and the reality of the facility will help them to "plan for their own care down the line.'' KEMH medical social worker Sharika Thomas added: "Some people don't like the environment of the facility. They find it very depressing. People still remember us as being the old Geriatric Ward. We're so entrenched in the hospital system, that people don't realise that we have our own identity.

"Once they are dropped off, the families start to visit initially, but it soon stops. We could never replace their family relationship. Families that come to visit don't want to see their mother or father like this. But people need to face their own mortality.

"And in some cases they don't come because they didn't have a good relationship with their relatives, so what problems existed have not been resolved.'' Ms Lewis said time spent with the residents of the facility is a mind opening experience and there is a wealth of history among the residents.

"These are the people that built Bermuda,'' she explained. "They talk about the old days and they have all this history. They love to reminisce and their minds are very sharp.'' The resident administrators maintain that to keep the residents entertained, they try to coordinate regular activities for the facility and they agree that it brings about a good atmosphere for the residents.

"We do have certain times that we'll plan something special,'' Ms Thomas said. "We have a resident family counsel and we will try to involve the family. Every major occasion they decorate.'' Ms Lewis and Ms Thomas also encouraged the community to volunteer to help at the facility and pointed out that the quality of the time, not the quantity of the time was what really mattered.

Donna Smith, chairperson for the resident family counsel, in agreement said: "The greatest gift you can give is not a diamond ring, but a diamond visit to the residents.''