Thursday, July 31, 2014 — Deron Hamel
While John Wickert has only been the nutritional care manager (NCM) at Burnbrae Gardens for about a week and a half, he says he’s enjoying his new job, largely because it’s a chance to make a difference to others. Read more
Adam Wicklum offering prayer meetings, Bible study and meditation programs
Wednesday, July 30, 2014 — Deron Hamel
Riverview Manor life enrichment aide (LEA) Adam Wicklum is bringing spirituality to the Peterborough long-term care home’s residents through prayer meetings, meditation activities and a Bible-study program.
About 15 residents are regularly attending the program, the LEA says, adding that people of all faiths are welcome as well as people who do not subscribe to any religion.
“It’s open to everybody who wants to come,” he says.
Some residents have even provided input to Wicklum for how to make the program more engaging. For example, one resident proposed getting residents to read verses aloud during the sessions, which is now part of the program. The resident also suggested Wicklum print biblical verses in large fonts so more people could read them.
“(The resident) also said that music really helps connect people, so in the Bible-study program and in the prayer meetings I will usually play two songs, one at the beginning and one at the end, that relates to the topic that we’re talking about,” Wicklum says.
The music, he adds, includes both traditional hymns and more recent music. The prayers and the music also provide residents an opportunity to reminisce, Wicklum points out. Residents with cognitive impairment, for instance, will often remember the music from their childhood.
While Wicklum is the one leading the program, the idea actually came from Riverview Manor’s residents’ council, whose members have requested additional spiritual services.
As part of the Spiritual Mondays program, Wicklum will select a theme — for example, right now it’s encouragement — that will be the focus of the prayer readings, Bible study and meditation activities.
Wicklum, in addition to leading Spiritual Mondays, writes and reads poetry to those who are receiving palliative care.
It’s Wicklum’s caring nature that earned him Riverview Manor’s Everyday Hero award this year. The accolade, which recognizes those staff members who go above and beyond for residents, will be presented to the LEA in August.
“He’s a very kind soul. He’s also very innovative,” says administrator Mary Anne Greco.
Do you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway? If so, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
– with files from Natalie Hamilton
If you have any feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
Nutritional care manager Alex Achillini is seen here after getting a pie in the face at Country Terrace’s family barbecue.
Tuesday, July 29, 2014 — Deron Hamel
A pie-in-the-face event at Country Terrace’s recent family barbecue not only underscored the OMNI Health Care value of fun and laughter, it also raised more than $300 for the Komoka long-term care home’s residents’ council.
Inclement weather on July 19 forced the Country Terrace team to setup the event, which had a carnival theme, indoors. But the change of venue didn’t affect the outcome of the day, says life enrichment co-ordinator Christie Patterson.
The life enrichment team came up with the idea for the event. Seven managers volunteered to stick their heads through a star-shaped opening in a board, and staff members, families and residents could donate their spare change for a chance to throw a pie covered in whipped cream and banana pudding at them.
In fact, administrator Karen Dann raised more than $100, Patterson notes, joking that she knew everyone would like the idea of managers being the object of the pie throws.
“It’s great to see your boss get a pie in the face,” she laughs. “It was quite a mess afterwards.”
Money donated to the residents’ council largely goes towards financing resident outings and in-house entertainment.
Click here to read a related story.
Do you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway? If so, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
If you have any feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
A scene from Country Terrace’s July 19 family barbecue.
Monday, July 28, 2014 — Deron Hamel
The weather outside may have been dull and grey, but inside Country Terrace the atmosphere was bright, cheerful and full of fun and laughter as the Komoka long-term care home celebrated its annual family barbecue.
Despite the change of plans to move the barbecue indoors, the July 19 event was a “huge success,” says life enrichment co-ordinator Christie Patterson, adding that nutritional carer manager Alex Achillini soldiered through the inclement weather by working the grill.
Staff members and volunteers quickly transformed the home’s chapel into an activity area. Each year the event has a different theme. This year had a carnival theme, with ring, balloon, ball tosses, musical entertainment and a pie-in-the-face fundraiser that rcollected more than $300 (more on that in an upcoming story).
Although the events had to be downscaled to accommodate an indoor event, the staff’s ingenuity ensured everyone had fun, Patterson says.
“We made it work — it was a little hairy, but we made it work and the families that came had an awesome time,” she says. “We made sure the kids, the residents and everyone else had a great time.”
Patterson says the event is an important part of the home’s culture because it allows residents to bring in as many of their family members and friends as they want, and the event is always “laidback and fun and has a family reunion atmosphere.”
“And it’s open to all generations — residents, their children and grandchildren,” she says. “(Before the event) I had not met a lot of the families, but they all showed up.”
Do you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway? If so, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
If you have any feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
Riverview Manor resident Aileen Bailey is seen here with LEA Adam Wicklum during a laughter yoga session.
Adam Wicklum’s laughter yoga program providing many benefits to residents
Friday, July 25, 2014 — Deron Hamel
Laughter, it has been said, is the best medicine, and if that’s the case Adam Wicklum has the cure for what ails you.
For the past two months, the life enrichment aide (LEA) at Riverview Manor has been leading a biweekly laughter yoga program at the Peterborough long-term care home. Residents look forward to the activity and participation has brightened spirits and put smiles on faces, Wicklum says.
The idea behind laughter yoga is simple: voluntary laughter has the same benefits as regular laughter in the sense that both provide a myriad of benefits. Often, the process of forcing laughter turns into regular, spontaneous laughter.
Wicklum, who has completed training in laughter yoga, says the program provides social, mental, physical, emotional and even spiritual benefits.
“Research has found that as we get older we laugh less, but laughter yoga allows you to laugh for no reason,” Wicklum says, noting the reasons why laughter is important.
“Laughter yoga promotes a positive mental state, increases oxygen supply, builds physical stamina, boosts immune systems, (creates) social connectedness , improves circulation reduces pain, helps people relax and is fun.”
There are several steps to laughter yoga. These include clapping, chanting, deep-breathing exercises and “happy-face” breathing (called so because participants draw a happy face in the air). After these steps, Wicklum leads residents in the process of getting people to laugh.
Different types of laughter are also encouraged — everything from a hearty, ho, ho, ho, to mimicking the chuckle of people’s favourite fictional villain, such as a witch, Count Dracula or the Joker from Batman.
Sometimes, Wicklum leads residents in a “laughter choir” where they are instructed to laugh at different pitches and lengths to produce a long, conducive chuckle — such as “ho, ha, hee.”
Wicklum says resident response to the program has been encouraging.
“Last week I had a resident who didn’t want to go, but then changed her mind and when it was done, she said she really liked it and felt uplifted, so that was great to hear,” he says.
When Wicklum leads the program every other Wednesday he tries to mix up the atmosphere. Sometimes the program is held in the activity room, but if the weather is nice he and the approximately 20 resident participants will go outside.
If you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
If you have feedback on this story, please call the newsroom at 800-294-0051, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
Riverview Manor resident Doris Shiniman is seen here with one of the many classic cars at the home July 22 during its annual car show.
Annual tradition has become so popular with residents, car club now calls home to book dates
Thursday, July 24, 2014 — Deron Hamel
Riverview Manor residents were once again treated to a car show that has become an important part of the Peterborough long-term care home’s culture.
In fact, the relationship between Riverview Manor and the enthusiasts who form the seniors’ car club has become so strong over the years the club now calls the home to book dates to visit — not the other way around.
Each summer car club members take their wheels to Peterborough-area long-term care homes and invite residents and staff members to have a look. The car show always brings back lots of memories for residents who often reminisce for days afterwards about the experience, says life enrichment co-ordinator Sherry Baldwin.
The July 22 event, which included a barbecue, saw an array of classic cars on display in the home’s parking lot. Baldwin says about 50 of the home’s 124 residents came outside to have a look at the cars, which included hot rods dating back more than 80 years.
“We also had a deejay this year, which was great, so there was lots of music and it was a lot of fun,” Baldwin says. “The cars were absolutely gorgeous and the residents loved it.”
If you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
If you have feedback on this story, please call the newsroom at 800-294-0051, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
Enjoying the flower gardens at Streamway Villa are (from left) administrator Kylie Szczebonski and residents Marnie Burke and Fred Hawes.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014 — Lisa Bailey
Volunteers are creating a pretty view from the patio at Streamway Villa. All around are well tended beds of colourful flowers and hanging baskets of red, robust geraniums and other natural beauties suspended from the patio canopy.
The helping hands of volunteers, including two teenagers and three adults with family or friend connections to Streamway Villa, are looking after the flower beds. And it’s very much appreciated by the home and its life enrichment team.
The volunteers are deepening the residents’ enjoyment of the outdoors in summertime, which contributes to their quality of life.
“The gardens are looking fabulous,” life enrichment aide Nancy Williams says.
“We like to keep our gardens looking so nice, and the patio and gardens is one of the attractions of our home,” she says.
From the patio, which is just off Streamway Villa’s dining room, the flower beds rim the perimeter of the yard and abut the building.
The volunteers carried out the planting and spread black mulch which accentuates the colour of the many blooms.
Residents are definitely noticing the volunteers’ handiwork during walks and from the patio, Williams says. The patio is a popular spot, visited by residents after every meal and into the evening. Campfires and other activities are held in the patio and yard area too.
It’s a place not only to connect with nature but also to the community as passersby are visible and sounds like church bells are audible.
Residents at Streamway Villa are also engaged in a gardening program at the home, tending to a raised vegetable garden that is right outside the dining room window – a great vantage point to see the growing foods.
Williams says gardening and connecting with nature is part of daily living for many people, and that continues for residents at Streamway Villa.
“It gives hope and purpose and (a sense of) belonging because they’re helping to maintain (living) things,” Williams says.
If you have a story to share or feedback on this article, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 25, or e-mail lisa(at)axiomnews.com.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014 — Deron Hamel
Forest Hill life enrichment aide (LEA) Shannon Lynch has brought a unique idea to the Kanata long-term care home that’s proving effective at engaging residents with cognitive impairment.
Lynch got the idea to bring larvae to a special area outside the home and engage residents in the process watching the cocoons hatch into butterflies from a newspaper article assistant director of care Nicole Fulford had shown her.
Plus, it has proved to be an excellent opportunity to bring residents outdoors to enjoy the summer weather while watching the chrysalis process inside a large mesh tent where the butterfly houses are stored.
Lynch says the residents have enjoyed many aspects of the program since it began in early June, from painting the butterfly houses to watching the vibrant colours of the butterflies’ wings to simply sitting outside in the warm weather.
Residents can sit inside the large tent and watch the butterflies come in and out of their house and fly around. Sometimes residents and life enrichment staff sit in the tent reading or talking and simply enjoying the ambiance.
The LEA says family members are overwhelmed with the program’s success. What has made it successful, she adds, is the fact that the program allows for residents to reminisce and socialize in an atmosphere that provides a lot of sensory stimulation.
“The family members are just blown away by this,” she says. “When you show them the photographs of their loved ones smiling and laughing, they love it.”
The program has also served as an opportunity to make new connections. Rita Gurova, a staff member who works in the kitchen, speaks Russian as her first language. One of the residents involved with the program also speaks Russian, so Gurova takes time to visit with this resident when the program is running.
Nineteen butterflies were hatched this year, and life enrichment co-ordinator Craig Forrest says he hopes to increase that number to 50 next year and open the program to more residents.
If you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway, please contact newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
If you have feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
Almonte Country Haven resident Vi Larose is seen here spending time with niece Sharon Pottle.
Monday, July 21, 2014 — Deron Hamel
Meet Vi Larose, a member of Almonte Country Haven’s 90-Plus Club.
Vi, who will turn 100 on Nov. 5, has been a resident at the Lanark County long-term care home about a year. She and her niece, Sharon Pottle, say they are happy with all aspects of life at Almonte Country Haven from the food, to the entertainment to the kind, caring staff who always have time for residents.
A lifelong resident of Almonte, Ont., Vi says her favourite aspect of life at the OMNI Health Care home has been the people she lives with as well as the staff.
“The people are all so friendly,” she says.
Sharon adds that Vi’s had a much more active social life since moving into Almonte Country Haven. When entertainers come in, Vi is “always sitting up in the front row,” she says.
“And Vi really loves the staff,” Sharon says.
Vi and Sharon also compliment Almonte Country Haven’s kitchen staff for the food served. Vi says the meals are enjoyable and she likes the fact that there’s always choice provided at mealtimes. There’s always snacks provided throughout the day, too, she adds.
Asked what she wants to do for her milestone birthday, Vi’s answer is straightforward: “Be happy.”
Almonte Country Haven launched the 90-Plus Club in June. The club is designed to honour residents who are nonagenarians and centenarians — people in their 90s and 100s.
The 90-Plus Club has 26 residents, with some nearing the 100-year mark. The purpose of the club is to “recognize, demonstrate our respect and acknowledge those residents who have reached 90 years or more,” explains administrator Marilyn Colton.
As part of the 90-Plus Club, members have the opportunity to choose activities and contribute to the home’s newsletter, Small Home, Big Hearts, and, if they choose, be profiled in the bimonthly OMNIway print piece.
If you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway, please contact newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
If you have feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
Mary Evanoff (centre) is seen here with her family during her 100th birthday celebration at Willows Estate July 10.
Friday, July 18, 2014 — Deron Hamel
It’s not every day that Willows Estate has a resident who turns 100, so when the occasion does happen the Aurora long-term care home goes all out to ensure centenarians are celebrated in style.
On July 10, several of Mary Evanoff’s family members and close friends came to the Willows to celebrate her special occasion. Making the event even more special, her granddaughters honoured Mary’s love of cooking by preparing some of the recipes Mary used to often make, including perogies.
“The granddaughters made the food and they brought it in and the family had a lovely lunch together,” says life enrichment co-ordinator (LEC) Teddy Mazzuca. “Mary was thrilled. She had a ton of family here, and it was a nice day for her.”
Staff members helped out with odds and ends, but for the most part it was Mary’s family who organized the party and made it come alive.
That said, the Willows team passed the hat around and collected donations to buy Mary a floral bouquet.
Mazzuca says Mary is only the second resident she has seen celebrate a 100th birthday at the Willows.
If you have a story you would like to share with the OMNIway, please contact newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.
If you have feedback on this story, please contact the newsroom at 800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.ca.