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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOIH Newsletter - May 2021 OUR ISLAND HOME Monthly Newsletter Inside This Issue: • Check Us Out in N-Magazine! • Our Island Home’s COVID Update & Keeping in Touch with Residents – Visitation Updates • Staffing Update • April Donations • Springing into Summer! Highlights: 1) Modified Calendar of Events 2) Employee of the Month 3) The Future of Our Island Home 4) Resources and Information May 2021 Volume 4, Issue 5 CHECK US OUT IN N-MAGAZINE! Our Island Home was so fortunate to be featured in the latest edition of N-Magazine. The article highlights the triumphs of our residents and staff over the course of our COVID journey thus far and includes some amazing photos, too! Check it out here: https://n- magazine.com/the-miracle-on-east-creek-road/ OUR ISLAND HOME’S COVID UPDATE & KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH RESIDENTS We are happy to share that as of the date of this newsletters’ publication, Friday, April 30th, we have (0) residents and staff with COVID, and (1) staff recovered from COVID. We continue to receive letters, photos, and words of hope to our resident email account: ourislandhome@yahoo.com. You can visit our Facebook page (Oih Nantucket MA) for daily OIH COVID updates, and resident family members and loved ones receive a comprehensive update weekly via email. SPRINGING INTO SUMMER! STAFFING UPDATE We are happy to announce a new addition to the Our Island Home team – David Carboneau will be joining OIH for at least the next 3 months as our new Administrator!!! Please join us in offering him a warm welcome, and in telling our treasured Bob Eisenstein a farewell. (We hope he’ll visit us this summer!) APRIL DONATIONS A major ‘Thank You’ to Alan Atwood & Pauline Healy for your donation to the Friends of Our Island Home this past month. Your generosity contributes directly to our resident’s daily life, activities, and overall well-being. Another giant ‘thank you’ to Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Bains for generously gifting OIH their incredible 50-year collection of National Geographic Magazines! The magazines are already getting so much attention and use by our residents 😊 Thank you Darci and Scott Creech for letting us visit your donkeys! Above: Flower Arranging Left: Resident Lucy celebrating her 100th! OUR ISLAND HOME 9 East Creek Rd Nantucket, MA 02554 PHONE: 1 (508) 228-0462 FAX: 1 (508) 228-6875 E-MAIL: Bob Eisenstein Interim Administrator OIHAdministrator@ nantucket-ma.gov We’re on the Web! Visit us at: www.nantucket-ma.gov INSTAGRAM: ourislandhomenantucket FACEBOOK: Oih Nantucket MA MODIFIED CALENDAR OF EVENTS We continue to make modifications to our activities calendar in efforts to follow best- care practices as recommended state and federal agencies that reflect evolving standards and regulations surrounding COVID-19. Daily, we continue to offer the following activities options: Coloring pages; Puzzles; Word search and trivia worksheets; Video chatting and phone calls with family and other loved ones; In-Person visits with loved ones; Exploring old Nantucket picture books; Independent crafting such as knitting, crocheting, and other art forms; Reading letters sent to us from our Nantucket community members; Independent or distance bible study; Spending 1:1 time with staff members for support and comfort; and listening to music on headphones. In addition to the above activities, our residents have kept busy playing on our tablets, arts-and-crafting, writing to their 3rd Grade Pen Pals at the Lighthouse School, and spending plenty of 1:1 time with staff. We have also enjoyed virtual groups such as Book Club, “Our Island Kids and Animals” with Susan Richards and the Nantucket Community School, services for Lent and Easter, and games like Live Jeopardy! FAMILY COUNCIL: The next Family Council Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 12th at 10 AM via Zoom. A link will be sent to family members the day prior. RESOURCES & INFORMATION If you have questions or concerns regarding evolving COVID-19 regulations and standards, please be aware of the Nursing Home Family Resource Line established by the Baker-Polito Administration. This is a dedicated telephone line that will connect family members of nursing home residents with information and resources they need. The line is staffed from 9am – 5pm, Monday through Friday, and the number is: 1 (617) 660-5399. THE FUTURE OF OUR ISLAND HOME Six facilitated discussions were held between July and September 2020 regarding the future of Our Island Home. One of these groups was held with internal Town of Nantucket staff and the remaining were held with key Stakeholders; including OIH residents, family, staff members and senior service providers on the island. On October 14, 2020 a review of these stakeholder forums was presented to the Select Board. Another round of facilitated discussions with additional stakeholder groups and community members are being held later this month. It is anticipated that additional discussions with the general public will occur sometime after those are completed. The information from these meetings will be reviewed by the Select Board and, along with prior studies done on OIH, will be utilized to determine what is the best direction the Town should procced in for the future of a nursing facility on the island. EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH For April, our residents elected staff member Karen Rowe-Thomas, CNA as our employee of the month, because of her willingness to go above and beyond, her constant helpfulness, and her unwavering reliability. Thank you, Karen, for all that you do!!! Daffodils in full bloom at OIH!