Bulletin of the Rotary Club of Moreland
EDITION 11|6 OCTOBER 2020
THE MORELANDER
AGED CARE IN THE PANDEMIC - A PERSONAL INSIGHT
Rosemary Freeman gives us a personal insight into the COVID pandemic and aged care facilities
Award of Excellence for Club Bulletin 2018-2019
Pages 3 and 4
Moreland Rotary acknowledges the Wurundjeri people of the eastern Kulin Nations on whose unceded lands we conduct our business. Moreland Rotary respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past, present and emerging. Moreland Rotary also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business.
Cover photo: https://www.australianageingagenda.com.au THE MORELANDER
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The Covid Pandemic and Aged Care Facilities – a personal insight Club Member Rosemary Freeman gave us all a remarkable insight at our club meeting last week to the trying challenges presented by the Covid Pandemic inside an aged care facility. Rosemary’s Background Rosemary has worked in privtae practice as a physiotherapist in Pascoe Vale for forty two years. She is now a part time practitioner with her daughter Clare taking over the practice six years ago and it now employs three part time physios. Aged care work Rosemary has also been working on a part time basis at the Edith Bendall Lodge (EBL) Aged Care Facility in Pascoe Vale for the past 10 years. The facility is a not for profit facility which was built by Rotary and Lions and opened in 1985. It is quite small consisting of 60 beds and 14 independent living units. Rosemary describes EBL as a caring and loving environment with a "family" feel, derived from its loyal long term staff who are familiar to all residents, and attentive to their needs. Rosemary’s role at EBL consists of the following functions: Assessment of every resident on admission for mobility and gait, Addressing as required any physical concerns including pain, strength, balance, Regular checking of walking aids and changing splints if necessary, to ensure best possible mobility, Provide programs and recommendations to address the above and liaise with staff re patient transfers and manual handling, and Reassess residents if/when they show any deterioration, especially following falls, and providing treatment as required.
THE MORELANDER
COVID Pandemic impacts:
Private Practice When the pandemic struck Rosemary and Clare closed the private practice until they felt confident that they could be adequately prepared to provide safe treatment. Hospital grade cleaners and hand sanitisers were in short supply back in March. This and other issues required waiting for recommendations from their professional association and DHHS. Because of the small size of the practice, with only one therapist working at a time, they could limit the number of clients coming and going which made it easier to set up a safer work environment for which masks, safety glasses or face shields are an essential component. Gloves are required at times and a protocol adopted for work clothes and shoes being changed after work and bagged to take home for washing. Rosemary emphasised the considerable stress associated with working under these conditions, involving a very high responsibility to be safe. EBL Aged Care Facility Rosemary emphasised the need for Aged care facilities and hospitals to continue operating while simultaneously addressing the potential hazards and implementing protocols and procedures in place under the guidance of DHHS. EBL has a high care dementia specific area, which Rosemary described as a beautiful section, allowing residents to move about safely. There is also a separated low care section. Residents have a variety of medical diagnoses, dementia being a major issue, with residents wandering within a nominated section of facility. Despite this it is extremely difficult and in fact DISALLOWED to restrain these residents, making it very difficult to prevent them from wandering into the wrong room at times.
Text::Trevor Moyle | Images: abc.net.au and edithbendall.com.au/
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The Covid Pandemic and Aged Care Facilities – a personal insight incontinence is a problem for elderly and a way COVID is also spread which was not known at the start of the pandemic. Residents require varying degrees of staff assistance, with bedbound residents needing up to three staff to transfer them and making social distancing not possible for staff and the resident. Some residents can be agitated or aggressive at times making the tasks even more difficult. Fortunately EBL has had no positive cases of COVID but many residents have been tested over the period of the pandemic, especially with the common incidence of coughs, sniffles in the elderly and many having underlying respiratory conditions. Some residents simply can't manage the proper "cough etiquette" - into the elbow so can unexpectedly cough, sneeze when staff are close to them. If a resident is waiting for a COVID test result they must be kept in isolation in their room and all staff treating that resident must wear full PPE gowns, gloves mask and face shields and dispose of it on leaving the room. During the height of the pandemic it sometimes took 3-4 days for results to come back creating a stress for families who couldn't visit over this time. Staff are required to wear masks, face shields at all times (removed and binned before leaving facility) and a uniform changed on leaving the facility.
Rosemary pointed out that an aged care facility can't close like a school, factory shopping centre for deep cleaning and not reopen until all positive cases have been cleared. Facilities such as EBL must continue to provide care to residents and operate within very difficult constraints, especially with so much experience been learnt on the run.
Summary: Rosemary’s presentation resulted in many questions and much gratitude from us all for the insights that she was able to provide on the much publicised COVID issues at Aged Care facilities. Her own reputation for diligence and compassion for her work made it easy for us to understand how well she has coped in extremely trying circumstances. It is something that we all find very inspiring as a fellow Rotarian. Well done!
Masks and face shields are very hot and uncomfortable when worn for a full day, leaving full time staff regularly experiencing face rashes and pressure points. PPE creates problems with communication between staff and staff-residents. For instance hearing impaired residents are not able to rely on their normally lip reading communication with staff in full PPE so basic communication can be exhausting for all concerned. Any staff waiting for a COVID test result can't work creating a strain on staff scheduling, with needed staff having to be drawn from emergency and supplementary lists.
THE MORELANDER
Text::Trevor Moyle | Image: David Redfearn
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Call us on 0448 852 747 or email us: moreland@rotary9790.org.au
THE MORELANDER
Images and Text: RI and David Redfearn|
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About Rotary District Governor's Newsletter "Bruce's Bulletin" is the monthly newsletter of District Governor Bruce Anderson. There is a lot of information about the many Rotary projects and events across our District. Simply click here to read the latest edition Members of Rotary are part of a diverse group of community and professional leaders working to address community and international service needs and to promote peace and understanding throughout the world.
Rotary districts are a way of grouping a number of clubs in a particular geographic area. The area covered quite often crosses state and even international boundaries.
Rotary District 9790 encompasses the northern Rotary clubs receive a charter suburbs of Melbourne and from the worldwide organisation - stretches north and north east of Rotary International. Victoria to the Murray River and up into parts of NSW. A Rotarian belongs to a particular Rotary Club often near his/her For more information about home or work or sometimes Rotary District 9790, click here because of the club meeting time. THE MORELANDER
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Upcoming events and meetings A standing invitation exists for all readers of The Morelander to attend Moreland Rotary Club meetings and some of our other events. Please let us know if you intend to join us by ringing David Redfearn on 0448 852 747 or emailing on dredfearn@vtown.com.au (click on email address).
Upcoming speakers/events 14 October: Monthly Board meeting (via Zoom) Chair: President David Redfearn 21 October: Lift the Lid and World Polio Day event (via Zoom) Chair: Silvana De Pretto 28 October: TBA (via Zoom) Chair: Emma Davis 4 November: TBA (via Zoom) Chair: Nino Galgano
Our Guest Speakers Moreland Rotary Club invites speakers to our club both from our local community and further afield. They come from a wide range of backgrounds and are invited because they hopefully inform and stimulate our members and guests. We feel that this is of value in fostering a deeper understanding of our diverse community and even providing guidance as to the types of activites and projects our club may engage in. However the opinions expressed by our speakers do not necessarily reflect any official viewpoint of Moreland Rotary nor those of individual club members. Irrespective of this we always offer a warm Rotary welcome to all of our speakers.
click here @RotaryMoreland THE MORELANDER
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Rotary Leadership 2020-21
Rotary International: President: Holger Knaack (Susanne) , Rotary Club of Herzogtum Lauenberg-Mölln (Germany) District Governor: Bruce Anderson (Marilyn), Rotary Club of Strathmore Assistant Governor Group 2: Emma Davis, Rotary Club of Strathmore Rotary Club of Moreland President: David Redfearn (Deanna)
Club Service Roles 2020-21
President Secretary Treasurer Club Service Community Service Vocational Services International Service and Assistant Bulletin Editor Membership and Rotary Foundation Local Environment Youth and Assistant Secretary Club Administration Bulletin Editor Australian Rotary Health Public Relations Club History Valued members Honorary Members
David Redfearn OAM Rosemary Freeman John Hoffmann Brian Bennett David Redfearn OAM Brian Bennett Trevor Moyle Trevor Moyle Jo Connellan Silvana De Pretto Nino Galgano David Redfearn OAM Rosemary Freeman Russell Stuckey Nino Galgano Richard McCarthy, Elly Gardner, Lee Garwood. Emma Davis The Hon. Kelvin Thomson, Helen Bailey, John Awler
District 9790 /Multi District Roles 2020-21
Assistant Governor, Group 2 District Community Service Chair and Australian Rotary Health District Legal Officer District Bulletin Editor and Peter Toomey Community Police Award Shine On Awards
Emma Davis Rosemary Freeman Nino Galgano David Redfearn OAM Brian Bennett
WHEN AND WHERE WE MEET: Moreland Rotary Club meets most Wednesdays at 7.30 for a 7.40 am start. Breakfast meetings tem pora We meet at the Sorrento Bar, 801 Sydney Road, rilyBrunswick, suspen3056 ded
HOW TO GET A COPY OF THE MORELANDER: If you would like to receive our bulletin via email each week, email our editor at: dredfearn@vtown.com.au WHERE TO SEND FORMAL CORRESPONDENCE: Attention: The Secretary, Moreland Rotary Club, PO Box 219, Coburg, Victoria, 3058
Chartered 14 August 1996 - Sponsor Club Coburg Rotary Club | Incorporated 13 August 2019 Designed using Canva - www.canva.com
THE MORELANDER
Images by David Redfearn and logos from rotary.org unless otherwise specified.
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During the pandemic we are meeting via Zoom on Wednesday mornings from 7.30-8.30 am and we have some great guest speakers. Why not join us one morning? Simply ring David on 0448 852 747 the day before to RSVP and then go to: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87077765173 just before the meeting to join in.