Live in Wayfarer 3.1 is a new set of acceptance criteria! Please browse the information in this category with caution as it is in reference to the previous review guidelines. To learn more about the new criteria, see here: https://niantic.helpshift.com/a/wayfarer/

Residential/Nursing Care Homes

I know this has been briefly answered before with the AMAs, however I feel that there needs to be a clearer ruling on the criteria surrounding care homes (residential, nursing, and specialist ones for learning disabilities/dementia/etc).

Speaking from my own experience as a healthcare worker, I would like to argue that as many people that live in a care setting are deemed vulnerable that care homes shouldn't be eligible as people not associated with those particular settings congregating outside a care home or even on the grounds of a care home could be seen as a safety risk, as well as a potential safeguarding risk.

Again, speaking from my own experience, I know thay some residents in care settings would love to have visitors and people to chat to but organising such a thing with a home manager can be a pain in the rear end due to paper work, risk assessments, and so forth. Take into account that some residents (particularly those afflicted with a form of dementia) can turn volatile in the blink of an eye as well, it could cause further complications.

Even without the safety and safeguarding concerns, many care homes are generic businesses as well, that whilst being an essential service, don't generally meet much of the criteria set out by Niantic.

However, I'm interested to hear other people's thoughts on this matter.

Answers

  • Gendgi-PGOGendgi-PGO Posts: 3,534 Ambassador

    That's an interesting take on things. Personally, I don't take much distinction between if it's a nursing home, senior care facility, or retirement facility: if it's something otherwise in/eligible, I vote accordingly.

    Especially with quarantining and social isolation fresh in everyone's minds, there is definitely risk in potential hoards of players showing up.

    If distinction is made, it would be nice if it was clear if exactly what kinds of facilities are meant - "generic" retirement facilities, nursing care facilities, specialist care, or any others.

    I hesitate to say I don't think any restrictions are necessary, but I think it falls back to the "case by case" type scenarios, and lack of one rule fitting all.

  • tehstone-INGtehstone-ING Posts: 1,154 Ambassador

    I can't think of any reason that such facilities would be acceptable. They're no different than an apartment building broadly speaking, with the added layer of some amount of medical care. Perhaps they could have art or other features within them that are eligible by their own merit but I would be hard pressed to ever accept one of these kinds of facilities on its own.

  • NorthSeaPoet-INGNorthSeaPoet-ING Posts: 895 ✭✭✭✭✭

    100% agreed. Like a home I work at is a historic building however, it's not one that you would normally walk past and it has a huge expanse of land, with the actual building being a good 5-10 minute walk from the nearest public footpath, meaning that if it was a wayspot, people without any valid reason for being on the grounds could potentially risk getting themselves into trouble or at the very least cause some level of alarm to either residents or staff.

    Many care homes in the UK provide pretty much the same sort of services - food, bed, medication, and staff to look after the residents. Obviously there are distinctions depending on the type of home, like a nursing home will have staff nurses as well as care assistants, whereas a residential home would have just care assistants and senior care assistants, and supported living would have support workers, and so on.

    Obviously my main concern is, if care homes in general were allowed, is the complications it could in regards to safeguarding, health and safety, and so on. Especially if the way spot isn't reachable from the footpath/sidewalk, as that would encourage people to enter grounds where they might not have a valid reason to go to.

    I definitely agree in regards to the risk of hordes of players showing up, and I see where you're coming from in regards to a case by case judgement.

    There are two in my town that could possibly pass based on a historic merit (former manor house for local nobility, and former orphanage run by some organisation that did a lot of good back in the day) but I've not submitted them because I'm uneasy when it comes to these sort of things. If the art is publicly accessible, like a statue on the grounds where visitors can go, then I'd be a bit more lenient, if still uncomfortable but a care home itself is something I would avoid myself.

  • NorthSeaPoet-INGNorthSeaPoet-ING Posts: 895 ✭✭✭✭✭

    And this is precisely why I feel nursing or residential care homes shouldn't be eligible wayspots.

    I'm sure the last thing anyone on pallative care needs is more players coming to that location.

  • Faversham71-PGOFaversham71-PGO Posts: 1,141 ✭✭✭✭✭

    That's just a stupid submission that doesn't meet any criteria anyway, no reviewer of any competence would pass that.

    The difficult areas are where the location could be valid for another reason - historical building/plaque, architecturally special etc.

  • NorthSeaPoet-INGNorthSeaPoet-ING Posts: 895 ✭✭✭✭✭

    A stupid submitter that got under my skin with it.

    Just annoys me that people think care homes are perfectly acceptable to submit, especially if there's other things in the area that could be submitted.

  • Gazzas89-PGOGazzas89-PGO Posts: 2,619 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Agreed, that person was dumb. Though it still begs the question why niantic dont weigh in on nursing homes and things on nursing homes

  • Faversham71-PGOFaversham71-PGO Posts: 1,141 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I think to some extent it depends on the location of the waypoint. Locally we've got a sheltered housing block on a busy street where there's a plaque that's a waypoint on the outside wall where it meets the pavement. It's a stop rather than a gym, and doesn't cause the residents anymore problems than any other passers by would so it doesn't concern me. If it was on the properties grounds/inside the building it would. It's also sheltered housing for elderly residents with low care needs (independent flats with a warden on-site for emergencies, but essentially the residents are generally healthy older people who interact with the community and aren't needing specialist care) - somewhere where the residents were recieving/needing high levels of care would be more problematic for me.


    How do you feel about Almshouses? There are several locally that are waypoints (on the gate to the development rather than inside).

  • NorthSeaPoet-INGNorthSeaPoet-ING Posts: 895 ✭✭✭✭✭

    All of the residential/nursing homes or hospices I've seen submitted so far generally have some sort of garden or grounds in front of the building that is obviously part of the premises, and usually it's the building that is being nominated hence my issue. Speaking as a care worker, it's too problematic having strangers on the premises without valid reason (I.E. coming for a job interview).

    I know there are some homes that don't have the luxury of having grounds or gardens in front of the building and just have a public footpath or pavement straight in front of their door. So, presumably residents in those homes would be less prone to agitation causrd by strangers walking past, etc.

    Every residential/nursing home I've come across on Wayfarer as well at the very least administer personal care, according to the CQC website, and given that personal care involves washing and dressing at the very least, you can see why I have concerns. I'm not implying that any player would go looking through bedroom windows deliberately, but it wouldn't look good if they're say down the side of the building when someone in a room.down that side could be in the process of being assisted with their personal care needs (not every care assistant thinks to shut the curtains).

    But yeah, basically the ones I've seen so far are too problematic to be considered eligible wayspots in my opinion. Sheltered housing and assisting living premises are a different matter and as I've not worked in sheltered housing or assisted living, I'm not overly familiar with what they would entail compared to nursing or residential/dementia care.

    As for almshouses, I'm not entirely sure what they are, so I can't really offer an opinion on them.

  • vampnik-PGOvampnik-PGO Posts: 3 ✭✭

    Basically checking - has there been any further advancement to this conversation? I've just been in a discussion where people were split as to whether a Community Centre for the residents was considered eligible for a nomination. I'm on the side of no, as there would be more people entering the grounds of the nursing home that wouldn't have reason to be there (potentially trespass), especially without the owner/management of the nursing home being aware of the location of the portal/stop. Has there been a comment from Niantic over this?

  • WillowWinters-PGOWillowWinters-PGO Posts: 40 ✭✭

    I asked this question here recently and it went round and round for awhile but none of the mods stepped in to say anything: https://community.wayfarer.nianticlabs.com/discussion/2805/why-are-senior-care-homes-eligible-spots

Sign In or Register to comment.