LUMBERTON — Local assisted living facilities are becoming more creative in their attempts to brighten the spirits of residents during a time of visitation restrictions related to COVID-19.
Three days after Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency concerning the coronavirus, Wesley Pines Retirement Community restricted visitors, with exceptions for end-of-life and emergent situations, said Amy Shooter, marketing director.
People who live in nursing homes or long-term care facilities, or who are 65 years of age or older, are considered “high risk” for illness, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
Communal dining and activities have also been canceled, Shooter said. But that hasn’t stopped staff members from finding ways to keep residents smiling. Activity staff members are going room to room to provide the facility’s 120 residents with meals, daily trivia, seek and finds books, and Bible devotions.
“They’re keeping the residents busy and entertained with different activities,” Shooter said.
Resources, such as online courses, free musicals, and tours of museums and zoos, have been made available to residents, Shooter said. And the staff is making every effort to keep residents happy and healthy.
The effort includes delivering workout videos to residents’ rooms to make up for time missed in the on-site fitness center, which is closed, she said.
“We’re going to take the workout to them,” Shooter said.
The Retirement Community also took to Facebook this past Thursday and Friday to share residents’ messages to friends and loved ones. One message by Marguerite Morton read, “To my loved ones: Keep up the good work and enjoy life. I’m doing good and I send my love.”
Others were more humorous.
Therese Morel wrote, “To my loved ones: To Carol and Linda, I love you always. Happy together soon. P.S. Send wine. White Merlot.”
Shooter said family members expressed gratitude for the posts.
“The families have called and emailed us to let us know how much these pictures meant to them,” Shooter said.
The Retirement Community has seen an increase in greeting cards and phone calls since the visitation restrictions were put in place, she said. The staff also encourages FaceTime and Google Duo video calls with family members.
Other assisted living facilities are using technology to keep residents connected to their families.
“We are encouraging our residents to call and FaceTime their loved ones,” said Meredith Seals, Victorian Senior Care chief operating officer.
Victorian Senior Care manages Lumberton and Red Springs Assisted Living facilities. There are about 62 residents in the Lumberton facility and 57 in Red Springs.
Phone and video calls are scheduled with priority given to residents who receive frequent visits, Seals said. But the scheduling allows each resident the opportunity to communicate with loved ones.
Activities like bingo are taking place in the hallways, where residents can participate at a safe social distance, she said.
A group of residents from one of the 14 Victorian Senior Care assisted living communities in the state will be featured each day on Facebook with a message to loved ones written on paper or a dry erase board, Seals said.
“So far, they are definitely adjusting to it,” Seals said of residents.
Morning Star Assisted Living, located on Goins Road in Pembroke, is hosting more activities and parties for residents during visitation restrictions, said Karen Hunt, owner and administrator.
“Our main goal is keeping them on their same daily routine,” Hunt said.
Phone calls from family members are welcomed at any time in the day, she said.
Residents also are spending time working in a garden outside the facility where tomatoes, peppers and collards have been planted, she said.
The facility is spread across three buildings on campus, and one of the buildings is a special care unit for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, she said. Morning Star cares for about 30 residents, with a limit of 11 per building.
On Fridays, residents are normally taken to Walmart, a local park or to McDonald’s, she said.
“They love to go on their outings,” Hunt said.
But those outings have been postponed because of restrictions ordered by Cooper in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
For now, residents seem to be adjusting, Hunt said. But she worries about them.
“If this goes on too much longer, I don’t know,” she said. “I just hope it’s (the virus) over soon.”
