Episode 8: Nursing Facility Outreach

Podcast date is December 21, 2020

Nursing Facility Outreach--Compassionate Care Visitation

Luke 2:12

Lord's Prayer

James 1:27. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Psalm 71-Forsake Me Not When My Strength Is Spent

1 In you, O Lord, do I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame!
2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
incline your ear to me, and save me!
3 Be to me a rock of refuge,
to which I may continually come;
you have given the command to save me,
for you are my rock and my fortress.

4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.
5 For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
6 Upon you I have leaned from before my birth;
you are he who took me from my mother's womb.
My praise is continually of you.

7 I have been as a portent to many,
but you are my strong refuge.
8 My mouth is filled with your praise,
and with your glory all the day.
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
forsake me not when my strength is spent.
10 For my enemies speak concerning me;
those who watch for my life consult together
11 and say, “God has forsaken him;
pursue and seize him,
for there is none to deliver him.”

12 O God, be not far from me;
O my God, make haste to help me!
13 May my accusers be put to shame and consumed;
with scorn and disgrace may they be covered
who seek my hurt.
14 But I will hope continually
and will praise you yet more and more.
15 My mouth will tell of your righteous acts,
of your deeds of salvation all the day,
for their number is past my knowledge.
16 With the mighty deeds of the Lord God I will come;
I will remind them of your righteousness, yours alone.

17 O God, from my youth you have taught me,
and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.
18 So even to old age and gray hairs,
O God, do not forsake me,
until I proclaim your might to another generation,
your power to all those to come.
19 Your righteousness, O God,
reaches the high heavens.
You who have done great things,
O God, who is like you?
20 You who have made me see many troubles and calamities
will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
you will bring me up again.
21 You will increase my greatness
and comfort me again.

22 I will also praise you with the harp
for your faithfulness, O my God;
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will shout for joy,
when I sing praises to you;
my soul also, which you have redeemed.
24 And my tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long,
for they have been put to shame and disappointed
who sought to do me hurt.

Approximately 1.5 million American citizens call nursing facilities and assisted living communities their home.

When a facility is in lockdown, this means no family visitation, no support from outside vendors such as hospice agencies and volunteer support. Community ministers who normally provide spiritual care to residents are also barred from entering the facility.

Center for Disease Control states loneliness causes premature death according to the article by Liz Seegert titled The Huge Emotional Toll COVID-19 Is Taking on Nursing Home Residents. Residents report COVID lockdown makes them feel like they are in prison.

The secret US prisons you've never heard of before:

CMU conditions:

no physical contact with family members and visitors.
Visitor must meet prisoner behind glass barrier
Lockdown in solitary 22 hours a day .
phone calls: 45 minutes per month, compared to the 300 minutes in other prisons.
letters: letters can be limited to six pieces of paper
visits from family. CMUs restricted to 4 hours per month. During visits, CMU visitors are barred from physical contact with prisoners.
Nursing Facility Resident conditions under COVID lockdown:

No physical contact with family members and or visitors (unless residents meet compassionate care guidelines).
Visitors can (with staff arrangement) meet with nursing facility either outside the facility or at a window (behind a glass barrier) where no physical contact occurs.
Isolated in their rooms during the day. All meals are eaten in their rooms. Therefore the ability to share meals with others is taken away from them.
Group activities are cancelled. Group worship services and group religious activity are cancelled.
Resident are dependent upon staff to come to them for any kind of social interaction.
Residents are dependent upon family members or friends contacting them through correspondence, mailed packages and if allowed visits at the window to say 'hello'.
How is this happening and can we address this problem?

Human rights abuses are occurring to a disenfranchised population throughout the United States.
Learn about our rights as American citizens, patients rights in long term care facilities, and what other options are available to long term care residents.
Create an effective strategy to alleviate the problem.
Inform and educate family members and friends of nursing facility residents of their right to visit under Compassionate Care guidelines: Nursing Home Visitation and Compassionate Care. If the facility does not allow Compassionate Care visits as indicated, stand up for the rights of the nursing facility residents. Don't assume that the nursing facility is going to properly adhere to the Compassionate Care guidelines. Communicate with facility staff and ask questions.
Encourage individuals, families, church communities, civic groups, home school groups to adopt a local nursing facility and or a nursing facility resident.
Train and equip individuals to become Chaplains to offer Compassionate Care:
provide spiritual care to nursing facility staff, assess the need of the nursing facility residents.
Facilitate connection of nursing facility residents to their own church/faith community.
Provide worship services in the facility and or virtually.
Provide one on one Compassionate Care to residents giving special attention to residents with no family and or community support.
Identify isolated home bound senior citizens who are in need of basic items such as food, clothing and a church community. Provide visitation and support to these home bound seniors in need. Invite these isolated senior citizens to become a part of the church community.
Guidance on Nursing Facility Visitation-CMS 9/20
It is my prayer that teams of people can be united in purpose to provide care to nursing facility residents.

Oaks of Righteousness ministries is currently creating an outreach program that will have 5 different aspects:

Baskets of Love: Individuals create baskets of items and distribute them to nursing facility residents. These baskets of love will provide a sense of hope and encouragement. Baskets of Love is inspired by Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child’s Shoebox Distribution program.

Nursing Facility Friendship Program: Provide one on one support in the form of friendship to long term care residents. Contact a nursing facility in your area to apply as a volunteer. Once approved by the nursing facility you can connect to a nursing home resident via phone, Zoom call, sending gifts, etc.

Outreach Ministry: Trains volunteers to minister to nursing facility residents, senior living facilities and home bound senior citizens. Volunteers are trained to provide chaplaincy services. Nursing facility chaplains will worship services, spiritual care and the coordination of ministry with local ministers. Assist nursing facility residents by connecting with online ministry, podcasts, TV ministry, YouTube channels, and local church outreach programs. Identify home bound senior citizens who are isolated and needing a church community.

Fellowship opportunities via Zoom: It is my prayer that we can come together as an online community to collaborate, network, share and support one another during this time. Zoom meetings train, equip, and inform each other how to effectively meet the unmet needs of nursing facility residents.

Holiday Programs: Offer love and support to nursing home residents during the Holidays. Mail letters of encouragement, Birthday, Holiday, and Christmas cards. Assist a nursing home resident in connecting with a faith community of their choice.

Compassionate Care Visitation: Nursing facilities are to allow visitors to see residents who are actively dying. Nursing facilities must allow nursing facility residents to have visitors due to the following reasons: Recent admission to a nursing home. Lack of family contact, change in family contact or no family contact. Facility should allow family to visit when resident when a family member or friend passes away.

Caregiver Support: Be a resource to caregivers. Provide emotional and spiritual support to family members and nursing facility staff.