By Ta’Leah Van Sistine, Community Reporter
Shirley Matherne became depressed and lost weight during the three and a half months her husband could not visit her at Our House Senior Living in Eau Claire.
Her husband, Randy Matherne, said he had visited his wife — who has dementia — almost every day before COVID-19 visitor restrictions were put in place this past March. Since then, he said he has called her at least three times a day, and has attempted to do some “window visits,” where he stands outside her window at the facility.
But he said he could still see her declining.
“You could kind of sense that she was almost maybe giving up a little bit,” he said, “like her spirit was just going down.”
Health care workers at long-term care facilities in Eau Claire said they’re providing people with technology, and are doing one-on-one and small-group activities, as more residents report they’re feeling lonely without family visits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s clear that the visitor restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19 have also changed how family members can visit their loved ones. . . if at all.
The AARP (formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons) said in a recent article that “failure to thrive” and “social isolation” have been listed as causes of death on death certificates of long-term nursing home residents who have died during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Technology sustains connections and routines
Nicole Weber, executive director of Azura Memory Care Homes in Eau Claire, said the facilities have iPads the residents can use to do Skype or Zoom calls with their family members.
Weber said before the COVID-19 pandemic, some residents had activities they would routinely do throughout the week. Technology enables those residents to continue their weekly activities, she said.
“If they were somebody that would go to church, and they’re religious and that’s important to them, we still try to accommodate that through Zoom throughout the week,” Weber said as an example.
Beth Kotewa, life enrichment coordinator at Our House, said residents can talk with their family members through video chats and phone calls for as long they’d like. Family members are also sending more cards and letters to their loved ones, she added.
Kotewa said Our House staff members try to post updates at least twice a day on the Our House Facebook page about the activities residents are doing.
“We do a lot of marketing on Facebook with pictures and just letting families know how the days are going with us,” Kotewa said.
Activities aim to keep residents busy
Residents are often caregivers before they go to a nursing home, so Weber said Azura tries to offer activities that make residents feel purposeful, such as doing the dishes or sweeping the floor.
“When all of a sudden (you have) taken care of your family your whole life, and now you’re not doing that anymore, they miss it,” Weber said. “ We just grab someone who looks like they need some engagement and say, ‘Hey would you like to help me set the tables?’ or ‘Would you help me pick up these dishes from dinner?’ And then they feel like they’re important.”
Weber said the staff tries to keep residents as busy as possible, so they don’t dwell on the fact that their family members aren’t able to visit them in person.
Instead, Kotewa said they do a “morning coffee and chat hour,” play bingo, watch movies, eat popcorn, color, decorate for fall and bake, among other activities, and — as Weber said — try to keep residents constantly occupied.
Loneliness remains an issue
Despite health care workers’ efforts, visitor restrictions at long-term care facilities continue to negatively impact residents, as the AARP noted in regard to “social isolation” as a cause of death.
Randy Matherne said the visitor restrictions are particularly bad for people, such as his wife, who have dementia.
“My wife, she knows her family, she knows me — they need to have that in-person contact,” Matherne said.
Weber said she believes there will be negative effects on the residents because of the visitor restrictions that are in place.
“I really do feel like at this point, we’re keeping them safe, and we’re keeping them healthy,” Weber said, “(but) I feel like in the long-run, there’s going to be some repercussions from this time when they aren’t able to see their families.”
Kotewa said it’s emotionally hard to see residents at Our House change from who they were six to seven months earlier.
“They may not want to do anything with us anymore because it’s like, ‘I wanna go home,’ we’re hearing a lot of ‘I wanna go home,’ ” Kotewa said. “We never used to have that, but if they can’t see (their family), they want to go home.”
Cathy Mallett, a physical therapy assistant at Sacred Heart Hospital, said some patients have shortened their hospital stays due to visitor restrictions.
“Patients that maybe would have benefited going to a nursing home for more rehab decide to go home instead because they can see their family there,” Mallett said.
Trying to fill the void
John Wigand, the chaplain at Marshfield Medical Center, said he finds that simply being in patients’ rooms provides them with comfort when their family members are not able to visit.
Breathing and meditation techniques help patients navigate their anxiety too, Wigand said. His role is to provide social, emotional and spiritual care for patients, which is important for those who are dying at a hospital.
“People who are in for an appendix and they can’t be seen for a few days by their family is one thing,” Wigand said. “But someone who, this is their terminal stay, that’s another experience altogether.”
Weber said at Azura, health care workers are constantly brainstorming ways they can fill the void that families aren’t able to fill, due to visitor restrictions.
She said staff members are “going above and beyond” to be more than just a person who medicates and feeds the residents — to instead, be a companion and make residents feel loved.
If a long-term care facility allows a visitor, Mallett said it’s crucial to take advantage of the opportunity.
“Be that visitor,” Mallett said. “Show up. Come. Be with your family and if you can’t, you have to do everything you can to at least communicate with them.”
Matherne said he knows it’s hard taking care of residents and patients in long-term care facilities and that health care workers are trying to help patients during this difficult time when their families cannot be with them.
He said even though she endured depression and weight loss, his wife is a fighter.
“She doesn’t want to go,” Matherne said. “She’s fighting to hang on, she’s trying to get better, even though she has a neurological disease that there’s no cure for.”
NOTE: All photos accompanying this article were taken by Ta’Leah Van Sistine.
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