April 29, 2020 —Spring has sprung. Birds are signing, the daffodils are dancing in the breeze, and residents of Kendal at Lexington are enjoying the fresh air and sunshine…while keeping their distance.
The new norm of social distancing has presented challenges for all of us, and the community of Kendal at Lexington is adapting as well according to Dianne Herrick, president of the resident association.
While the staff is busy with maintaining care and managing safety measures to prevent COVID-19 from impacting the campus, the residents are pitching in to do their part.
Telephone Buddy System
While meetings and gatherings were the standard before the quarantine, residents are now keeping in touch between each other and staff with a Buddy Call system. Part wellness check and part morale booster, the calls are an extension of the staff’s communications with residents. According to Herrick, this new initiative is well received both by the volunteer callers and by those receiving the calls.
Another way to stay in touch is by additional newsletters and video messages. The monthly resident newsletter, co-edited by two residents, has expanded to at least weekly depending on new information and procedures on the campus. They not only cover the news, but they particularly want to focus on upbeat activities, such as the Easter Bonnet Parade. Held on the Saturday before Easter, independent living residents created fun and colorful Easter Bonnets and paraded around the Borden center, where nursing center residents were able to watch out their windows for the carefully spaced parade.
Volunteering Time and Talent
In order for every staff member at Kendal to have a facemask, an urgent call went out for volunteers to sew them. As usual for the community, 22 volunteered to sew masks. The effort was coordinated by a volunteer who distributed patterns and material, and others who launder and bag the masks before distribution.
As staff became fully equipped, the focus turned to residents. Again, the Telephone Buddy System went to work to find out who still needed masks and deliver them to their residence. Meeting the demand and getting the supply chain worked out was a challenge according to Herrick, but, “It’s working,” she said.
The Upside to Lockdown
The normal schedule of classes, meetings, and activities at Kendal has come to an abrupt halt just as it has for most communities. That hasn’t dampened the feeling of connection and community. Herrick says things like the Buddy Call System and planning virtual events keeps residents feeling connected. “It’s really been a wonderful way to communicate. It seems like we feel more linked,” she said. “Planning the Easter Bonnet Parade, sewing the masks, still gives us the fun of doing something together.”
Keeping it Safe
The resident’s association is taking action in coordination with staff. Activities such as the Easter Bonnet Parade were carefully coordinated to ensure that residents in the nursing center could have a fun activity while staying in their rooms and that participants maintained safe distancing.
Other safeguards recently added is a checkpoint at the entrance to the campus. Whether it’s a delivery driver or other visitor, they are checked in, and temperatures are taken before entry. While residents had a central area to pick up mail, packages are now being delivered outside the resident’s door.
Keeping Their Chin Up
Despite the changes Herrick says everyone is keeping their chin up and the sense of community has grown. “We know we can do this. A lot of the residents have experience overcoming loss and hard times, some remember WWII, and all of us remember 9/11. We know how to dig deep at times to cope.”