Small steps

The coronavirus pandemic has been very challenging for older Tasmanians, including those who are clients of Anglicare Tasmania’s home care services. We’re supporting them every step of the way.

General Manager Home Care Services Connie Bruckard looks back on the restrictions of the past months, and shares some recent developments.

“When our clients were instructed to stay at home for their own safety, they had to rely on Anglicare support workers to do the things they usually enjoyed doing themselves, such as shopping for groceries and collecting essential medications,” Connie said.

“Social outings, classes and family gatherings were sorely missed.

“We provided our clients with hand sanitising supplies and instructions and kept a very close eye on their physical and mental wellbeing during this time.

“Our staff assisted with telehealth consultations and maintained cleaning regimes so that routines were normalised as much as possible.

“I’m so proud of the way my team stepped up to the plate, at a time when they were facing uncertainties with their own personal situations,” said Connie. “We’ve received some lovely messages of gratitude and support from our clients, which is a testament to the compassion and professionalism of our staff.”

Kay from Ulverstone sent the following message to mark Aged Care Employee Day earlier this month:

“May your team of kind and caring supporters look forward to a more restful time and begin soon to look forward in faith, hope and trust,” Kay wrote.

August marked a major milestone in the recovery process, when public health advice gave us the go-ahead to take some of our clients out on shopping trips, under strict safety protocols.

“We ask passengers to sit in the back seat diagonally across from the driver, and our staff sanitise car door handles and seatbelts between clients,” Connie explains.

“Our clients were so thrilled to get out and about and so were their support workers,” she said. “It’s given everyone a reason to smile and shown us the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Here’s what Leon (pictured above) had to say about his recent outing:

“When you get to my age getting out is good. Very odd times feeling very restricted – I even missed celebrations for my 92nd birthday. But my word were the girls at the shop happy to see me.  I’ve been going there since they opened, 2-3 times per week when I drove, weekly now with the assistance of my support team. I’ve been going there so long that the staff all call me ‘Poppy’ and even gave me a cake for my birthday last year.”

Staff and clients are looking forward to the return of the full program of outings and experiences. As usual, Anglicare will heed all public health advice and put the safety of our clients and staff first.

If you’d like to find out more about Anglicare’s home care services, please give us a ring on 1800 243 232.