Whether they’re helping residents enjoy a game of bingo or sitting down for a one-to-one conversation, volunteers are an integral part of the fabric of Pleasant Meadow Manor. Read more
Pictured above, Claire Shorten, a Grade 12 student at Crestwood Secondary School, is doing a placement at Springdale Country Manor.
PETERBOROUGH, Ont. – Claire Shorten, a Grade 12 student at Crestwood Secondary School in Peterborough, says her placement work at Springdale Country Manor has been a step forward toward her career goal of becoming a nurse. Read more
Frost Manor volunteers Carol Gadsden (left) and Christine Rose (right) are seen here with the home’s environmental services manager Rick Riel.
LINDSAY, Ont. – Frost Manor volunteers Christine Rose and Carol Gadsden will offer their help anywhere it’s needed at the Lindsay long-term care home, but the duo plays a particularly important role keeping the 62 residents safe.
Working together, Christine and Carol help environmental services manager Rick Riel and his team with infection control. They pay extra attention to sanitizing high-risk areas of the home, such as hand rails, baseboards and doorknobs.
“They play a very important part (of infection control),” Rick tells The OMNIway. “We have only had one outbreak this year, and that’s a testament to all of the staff, but Christine and Carol come in and they do extra cleaning that the staff probably wouldn’t get to. … They give a double boost to the infection control process.
“They are an integral part of improving the residents’ quality of life,” Rick adds.
Christine and Carol also help with the laundry. Having two sets of extra hands helping with laundry ensures the laundry team never falls behind schedule, which is important since the home has a policy of getting residents their clean clothes returned to them within 24 hours, Rick notes.
“They help make that possible,” Rick says, adding, “I like having them here, and they enjoy coming here, and we have a lot of fun.”
“And Rick always keeps us involved in things, too,” Carol adds.
Christine and Carol were among the volunteers honoured with a special luncheon on April 19. Nutritional care manager Zach Jarvis and his team prepared a lunch of pork chops with a rosemary-sage cream sauce, roasted potatoes and vegetables, with cheesecake for dessert. Lyndsay gave a speech thanking all volunteers for their work and dedication to residents.
April 15-21 was National Volunteer Week 2018. The week is marked by events nationwide that celebrate volunteers and all they do to enrich the lives of others. This year marked the 77th National Volunteer Week.
Anyone interested in volunteering at an OMNI Health Care long-term care home can call 1-705-748-6631 for more information.
If you have a story you would like to share with The OMNIway, please contact the newsroom at e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
If you have feedback on this story, please call the newsroom at e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
A group of students from Cornerstone Christian Academy paid a visit to Village Green on April 18 to help the Greater Napanee long-term care home pay tribute to its volunteers. Read more
Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal (centre) is seen here speaking with Riverview Manor resident Robert Peltz (left) and OMNI Health Care president and CEO Patrick McCarthy on April 23. Leal was at the Peterborough long-term care home to announce that a new site for Riverview Manor would be built by 2022 as part of Ontario’s long-term-care-home renewal strategy.
PETERBOROUGH, Ont. – Exciting news came to OMNI Health Care on Monday (April 23), when it was announced the province will be funding the construction of a new Riverview Manor with 36 additional beds as part of the province’s capital redevelopment program for long-term care homes.
Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal was at Riverview Manor in Peterborough on Monday morning to make the announcement and to meet with OMNI president and CEO Patrick McCarthy as well as with residents and staff members.
Through the funding, a new Riverview Manor will be built in the city’s north end. OMNI is in the process of finalizing a land deal for the site of the new 160-bed Riverview Manor. The present home has 124 beds.
The Ontario government introduced a long-term-care-home renewal strategy in 2014 as a multiyear plan to support the renewal of 30,000 beds by 2025. The recent announcement of 5,000 additional beds, which includes Riverview Manor, supports the viability of the renewal program, McCarthy says.
OMNI has long supported the goal of rebuilding and modernizing older long-term care homes in Ontario, McCarthy says. Rebuilding and renovating homes will provide more comfortable, home-like rooms and amenities, enhance care and provide greater dignity for residents and families, he adds.
Newer homes will also offer wider hallways, smaller resident home areas, more storage and quieter, more home-like dining and lounge spaces. Privacy for residents will be improved through the elimination of three- and four-bed wards.
“(A new site for Riverview Manor) will enhance the environment for residents and their care, and create a safer and more comfortable living experience,” McCarthy tells The OMNIway.
McCarthy says OMNI is also applauding the province’s redevelopment program for the stability and viability it will create for Ontario’s long-term care homes.
OMNI’s older homes, he notes, have licences that expire in 2025. The new Riverview Manor will be a state-of-the-art Class A home and have a 30-year licence.
While having modernized long-term care homes is important, it’s the homes’ staff members who make the greatest difference. During his visit, Leal commended OMNI for its contribution to Ontario’s long-term care sector and Riverview Manor’s staff members for the service they provide.
“OMNI has a wonderful (presence) in the province of Ontario, and the team that’s here (at Riverview Manor) can take great satisfaction in the level of care that you provide, and that’s so important,” he said.
If you have a story you would like to share with The OMNIway, please contact the newsroom at e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
If you have feedback on this story, please call the newsroom at e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.
Pictured above, Laurie Brooks (right) has been volunteering at Frost Manor for 10 years. Life enrichment co-ordinator Lyndsay Irwin (left) says Laurie is a “bright, bubbly personality who always brings a lot of life to the home.”
LINDSAY, Ont. – Laurie Brooks says she “always wanted to look after people,” so she decided to try her hand at volunteering at Frost Manor. Ten years later, Laurie is still a regular volunteer at the Lindsay long-term care home. Read more
Left to right, Forest Hill volunteer musicians Pat Hennessey, Andrew McWeeny and Gerry Armstrong hold the OLTCA Circle of Excellence awards they were presented with on April 18.
Forest Hill on April 18 presented three of its volunteer musicians with Circle of Excellence awards from the Ontario Long Term Care Association (OLTCA) to honour their contributions to residents. Read more
Therapeutic Paws of Canada volunteer Connie Coll and her cat, Hero, are pictured here during a recent visit to Springdale Country Manor.
SPRINGVILLE, Ont. – Connie Coll says the support she and her cat, Hero, have received from Springdale Country Manor has been “wonderful” since the duo began volunteering at the Peterborough County long-term care home 15 months ago. Read more
Burnbrae Gardens staff and residents are pictured here on April 12 wearing hockey jerseys in support of the Humboldt Broncos hockey team.
Residents and staff members at Burnbrae Gardens showed their support for the Humboldt Broncos on April 12 when they joined the #JerseysforHumboldt campaign in support of those affected by the recent bus crash that claimed the lives of members of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League team and employees. Read more
Casey, a cat who has lived at Village Green for many years, is pictured here with Brianna MacPherson, the daughter of Village Green maintenance manager Brian MacPherson, in this photo taken in 2004.
One of Village Green’s longtime team members plays a unique but important role at the Greater Napanee long-term care home – and you might be surprised to learn who that is. Read more