Day 1 (Part 2)
7 staff from this morning’s training were assigned to our site. 4 showed up. So I guess the training was effective.
Staff at the CHSLD are clearly overwhelmed but holding it together. Most of the staff we met today have been transferred from other sites in the past few days. Everyone was very kind and so grateful to have help arriving.
We had a general orientation to the building and passed by the residents’ rooms. COVID positive rooms are marked with a red dot, “clean” rooms with a green dot. There are very few green dots.
We got to practice the PPE procedure a couple of times with supervision, which was helpful. They seem to be working hard to get protocols in place and get the situation under control. It was overall less chaotic than some of the scenarios we’ve heard about, although definitely still critical.
So far the goal is just to keep up with residents’ basic needs: if everyone has had breakfast by 1pm, that’s a good day. But staff expressed hope that with more help, they’ll be able to put at least some resources toward social and cognitive stimulation, which has been sorely lacking. One nurse put it like this: Solitary confinement is the worst punishment for prisoners, and this is how many patients have been living for weeks, which could be their last weeks of life. Oof.
Anyway all this to say. I had literally drafted my resignation letter at noon today but after meeting the staff and the residents I’m not sending it... yet. I’ll find out soon when my first shift is and I’ll show up, I guess I owe them that much. Beyond that... we’ll see.
One day at a time I guess.
Day 2
Staff at the CHSLD are clearly overwhelmed but holding it together. Most of the staff we met today have been transferred from other sites in the past few days. Everyone was very kind and so grateful to have help arriving.
We had a general orientation to the building and passed by the residents’ rooms. COVID positive rooms are marked with a red dot, “clean” rooms with a green dot. There are very few green dots.
We got to practice the PPE procedure a couple of times with supervision, which was helpful. They seem to be working hard to get protocols in place and get the situation under control. It was overall less chaotic than some of the scenarios we’ve heard about, although definitely still critical.
So far the goal is just to keep up with residents’ basic needs: if everyone has had breakfast by 1pm, that’s a good day. But staff expressed hope that with more help, they’ll be able to put at least some resources toward social and cognitive stimulation, which has been sorely lacking. One nurse put it like this: Solitary confinement is the worst punishment for prisoners, and this is how many patients have been living for weeks, which could be their last weeks of life. Oof.
Anyway all this to say. I had literally drafted my resignation letter at noon today but after meeting the staff and the residents I’m not sending it... yet. I’ll find out soon when my first shift is and I’ll show up, I guess I owe them that much. Beyond that... we’ll see.
One day at a time I guess.
Day 2
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