Sunday, 22 November 2020 22:10

Life At Little Sisters of the Poor, Randwick,Under Covid-19. Greg McEnnally msc

Life At Little Sisters of the Poor Under Covid-19. Greg McEnnally msc

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  Life is full of surprises. When someone says “I am going to do …”, God laughs. We do not know the future and if we had any doubts about this before, surely Covid-19 has put an end to them. Probably nobody could have predicted this pandemic and how it would pan out – medically, geographically, economically, and politically.

      

I have been chaplain to the Little Sisters of the Poor Nursing Home in Randwick since 2014, each day driving the 3.5 km from the Sacred Heart Monastery at Kensington to the Little Sisters, and back. By March, 2020, Covid-19 had arrived.

                                     

The monastery, where most of the residents are elderly, went into lock-down. The Little Sisters, where all residents are elderly, also went into lock-down. What to do? It seemed logical that I shift my residence to the Little Sisters. They were amenable and they expressed utter delight! Did they really know what they were getting?? – charitable community, these Sisters. I moved in at the end of March, taking with me only what I would need. Now they could be assured of daily Mass, and it is an honour for me to be able to provide this.

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Residents remain in the house, going out only for medical appointments, shopping or exercise. If a resident needs to go to hospital, then he/she needs to be tested for Covid-19 and to spend 14 days in isolation upon return. This can be irksome. If the residents need to do shopping often other people can do it for them.

On one occasion the Sisters did a lot of shopping for general items, which went on display: people could take whatever they needed. A fantastic initiative, indicative of the real caring spirit of these Sisters. I doubt if many other nursing homes came up with this service. As regards exercise, I certainly relish the opportunity each afternoon, either to swim, walk or bike ride. Once a month I take a day off to go walking sections of the Great North Walk up near the Hawkesbury.

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Anybody coming into the Home must first have had a flu injection. Hand sanitisers are available in the foyer and throughout the home and temperature is taken upon entry. This could be rather amusing during the winter months when skin temperature can be lowered by cold air, registering perhaps 34 degrees; “but I am still alive”! Staff members wear masks, as do the Sisters and I when around the residents. Social distancing is so important.

This social distancing requirement has the unfortunate corollary of limiting visitors, which can be rather hard both on the family and on the resident, especially so when there is some cause for celebration, such as a birthday. One of the important practices here is to celebrate birthdays, as a way of recognising the uniqueness and value of each person.

At lunch the birthday person receives a bunch of flowers, a card and a cake with a candle. The Birthday Quartet then sings Happy Birthday, together with everyone else. This famous quartet includes yours truly, preparing of course to trip the light fantastic. It also includes a resident who is a member of the Sydney Male Choir, so at least one of us can actually sing. We all have fun.

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Father’s Day should be happy but can be sad when the family must keep their distance. We made a special effort at Mass and afterwards at lunch. Those fathers (grandfathers and great grandfathers) who could were placed in a separate room, with suitable decorations and a parcel of presents for each man. It was a special meal. I applaud these initiatives.

      

When a resident is dying, then the family do come in, after due precautions, including wearing protective clothing. Otherwise family members can talk with their loved ones through a glass window: sad, but necessary. At least they can see each other. The home to date has not had a single case of Covid-19, and we want to keep it that way.

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