Team effort helped Riverview overcome staff shortages – Burns
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 -- Craig Anderson
Despite Riverview management having to fill different administrative voids for more than four months of 2005, the year saw the implementation of a more personalized nursing strategy, renovations to the palliative care unit, and the development of a special spa program.

The staff rallied during difficult periods in the “whirlwind” year, says Kelly Burns, administrator.

The nursing staff – while lacking a director of care and NASM for large blocks of the year – altered the home’s nursing strategy so that a group of nurses would always provide care for the same residents.

“This way staff member get to know residents more personally, and it has made the staff stronger as a team,” says Kelly. “We’ve reduced a lot of behaviours too. We’re meeting the needs of residents on an ongoing basis, and it has also cut down on family concerns.”

The staff also established a spa program, which offers “special pampering” for residents two nights a week, says Kelly.

Resident care was also improved through the addition of thirteen new lifts, as well as wound care supplies purchased through the “Healthy Living, Healthy Skin” initiative.

This fall, Dave Routly, the home’s new maintenance manager, installed specialized “pressure reduction” mattresses that minimize skin breakdown despite prolonged positioning. The addition of staff members like Dave, says Kelly, is one of the reasons that Riverview has thrived despite persistent challenges in 2005.

“He fixes things that haven’t been fixed in years,” says Kelly.

In 2005, Riverview, like numerous other OMNI homes, was subject to renovations both large and small. The palliative care unit was given a facelift, and the chapel is currently undergoing renovations. The installation of a new floor and the addition of pews will give the home’s spiritual centre a more church-like feel, says Kelly.

OMNI home office staff and other home managers were instrumental in helping Riverview flourish despite staff shortages, says Kelly. Linda Burr, administrator of Frost Manor, and Susan Towns, assisted Kelly in her first full year as an administrator. OMNI staffers Shawn Riel, operations, and Glen Boyd, finance, answered questions and provided guidance in a year that Kelly describes as a colossal “learning experience.”

“We met our challenges this year. So, we’re ready for 2006 and whatever it throws at us.”