The Victorian Order of Nurses (VON) has been offering day programs to seniors in Orillia for 24 years. The non-profit organization caters to seniors who have some form of memory loss and/or are isolated due to frailty.
The program also provides necessary respite for family members and caretakers of 71 seniors in our community for six hours a day
“The family caregiver can go out shopping, they can get a rest, or get some chores done, while their family member comes here for a day of recreation,” said VON adult day program coordinator Jennifer Minor.
Unfortunately, when the COVID-19 pandemic happened, VON was forced to close their doors and discontinue their day program services, leaving seniors in distress.
“Some of our clients are declining because they are not stimulated like they used to be when they were engaged with our day program," Minor explained.
The team of nurses at VON came up with a solution to help seniors stuck at home during the pandemic. Now, seniors are connected with their day programs through virtual programming on YouTube.
“We do game videos, active videos, trivia videos, Pictionary and things like that. It helps engage them,” Minor explained
VON staff have also created personal kits to keep seniors busy with activities.
“For somebody who is into crafts, we will provide colouring or painting with the kit, we put soup in a jar for them to provide a meal, and we put links in there for the Alzheimer’s Society so they have access to other services from home,” Minor said.
The effort and ingenuity has been appreciated by Mary-Frances Goodwin, whose mother began participating in the VON day program four months ago.
"This program is incredible," said Goodwin. "The activities stimulate the creative mind, they do physical activity, they hit every button in terms of encouraging and stimulating my mom’s personhood and they are experts at it."
Goodwin was even more impressed with the way VON has kept in touch with her mother through the pandemic.
“They are going way beyond the call of duty to make sure they are still doing their mission statement, which is staying connected with seniors,” she said.
A few days before Mother’s Day, Goodwin was shocked when VON staff arrived at her house to drop off a card, delivering warm wishes to her mom.
“This is rare that these women are still connecting with the clients, driving care packages and things to my driveway. They don’t have to do that during COVID, but they are out of concern for their clients,” Goodwin said.
That feedback is music to Minor's ears.
She said if local seniors can’t be reached through online access or the kits, the VON team makes sure to connect through handwritten letters.
Seniors are also engaged through teleconference bingo and are provided birthday cards during their birth month. Each week the VON team also conducts a wellness check.
“We will call the caregivers to ask if they have any concerns or questions, Do they need help with anything? Do they need someone to go get some groceries?” Minor explained.
The biggest challenge for VON during the pandemic is making sure they can keep in touch with all the seniors from their program. Not everyone has access to the virtual programs on YouTube, however, the team makes sure that they still keep in touch through one form or another.
“Even if it’s just a phone call, they really appreciate it,” Minor said.
Although the pandemic is not ideal for seniors, it’s given the VON staff an opportunity to get to know the people they look after, Minor says.
“Sometimes you learn more about a person when you are connecting one-on-one then you would at the day program. That’s been kind of nice.”
In the near future, VON will be looking at providing one-on-one in-person services with one staff member and one client which has been approved by public health officials.
Members will be screened over the phone the night before arriving at the Burnside Line location, and will again be screened at the door when they arrive. VON staff will be equipped with personal protection equipment to deliver their services.
