Heather Bruemmer WCCEAL Provider Award for Assisted Living Quality

The team at Three Pillars' Compass Point came together in crisis with continuous teamwork, communication, dedication, and FUN.

Caregivers overhauled traditional processes and implemented new and different processes in addition to their usual priorities. Direct caregivers needed help so they could focus on resident cares and all the additional COVID-related tasks they had to undertake. The Interdepartmental Team stepped up and devised a meal order and delivery system, going above and beyond to make sure it all happened – three times a day, seven days a week, even signing up on weekends and holidays.

Tasks were identified that caregivers previously had done but were not direct care-related. Employees from other departments learned them so direct care staff could focus on meeting residents' needs.

Nursing staff no longer had a schedule; it was endless days of resident assessments and documentation, training, audits, and COVID testing.

Keeping up with tasks like emails, schedules, evaluations, assessments, and quarterly reports happened in the evening. It was what had to be done to make sure they always had the residents' best interests and needs at the forefront.

Laurel Manor faithfully followed new regulations and guidance from the Health Department, DHS, CDC, and their local health care providers. They awaited communications from LeadingAge Wisconsin to help them manage the pandemic. Sometimes new guidance came daily and sometimes hourly. They adopted the practice of daily updates to policies and procedures, daily meetings, and daily communication and support to maintain their commitment to quality services for the tenants and families.

Staff focused on keeping tenants safe. They disinfected common touch areas multiple times daily, so much so that the finish on the handrails wore off! When they weren't working, the staff stayed home to avoid unintentionally bringing COVID into the building.

Tenants and staff made signs to support each other and to encourage everyone to keep going. The tenants were safe and happy because the staff was "all in."

LindenCourt Mukwonago championed continued efforts to maintain Gold Member status in WCCEAL throughout the three years of the COVID-19 pandemic and unprecedented daily regulatory changes, visitation changes, workforce challenges, and beyond. Many staff members are Mukwonago residents who grew up visiting family members living throughout the LindenGrove communities. Many of the nursing leaders began as certified nursing assistants throughout the LindenGrove communities and proudly raised the bar of quality for the residents that they considered as important as their own "grandmas and grandpas."

When the pandemic hit, the staff did not run away, but rather ran into the "fires" the pandemic fueled to become "family" to the residents when their real families could not visit. The compassion that the staff extended to residents while ensuring quality outcomes is worthy of recognition and celebration.

For residents of Oakwood Knoll, each day is a new day and trying to provide structure in the ever-changing world outside during the throes of the COVID pandemic was a great challenge to be overcome. The staff was able to accomplish this through the commitment of their Life Enrichment Department to provide one-on-one activities with each of the residents. In addition, they took steps to continue to allow residents the opportunity to see families through scheduled window visits, becoming experts in virtual meeting technology, and the rollout of a web-based system for family members to send (sometimes daily) messages to their loved ones. Through these means, the Knoll staff was able to provide community and structure for their memory care residents, even while the world outside was in a state of isolation and chaos.

The vulnerability of the population of Oakwood Meadows put infection control and risk mitigation efforts at the forefront of the minds of all staff members during the COVID pandemic. The sacrifices staff made to keep residents safe are astonishing. With an "all hands-on deck" mentality, the Meadows maintained a COVID screening desk staffed around the clock with everyone taking turns working "midnight shifts" and "sunrise shifts" to ensure everyone entering the building could safely be there.

Cleaning became a job duty of everyone and the sight of a member of the therapy department in a backpack disinfectant sprayer is fresh in the minds of everyone at the Meadows. Independent living residents hand-sewed masks for staff and residents when PPE ran short. Staff members picked one another up in times of stress.

The Meadows had their assisted living population at 100% immunization by January 2, 2021.

Prairie Home's response to the pandemic was unwavering, passionate dedication to the tenants.

Some little extras that made a big difference include:

• Decorations/ and music displays to distract from the loss of communal dining and activities
• Photos from families transformed into Valentine's placemats for tenants
• Decorated carts for hallway happy hours and socially distanced activities
• Outdoor holiday decorations that were visible from every apartment
• One-on-one hair styling, manicures, and pedicures by staff when the salon was closed

COVID-19 challenged the staff to ensure physical and emotional well-being and the highest quality of life for tenants while dealing with their own personal burdens.

The Prairie Home team sought opportunities to make a difference in the lives of the tenants, comforting and calming them, reminiscing, lifting spirits, and easing the burden of loneliness and seclusion.

In the words of the director, "We cried, we laughed, and we cried some more. There were desperate, terrifying moments and dark days, but our vision was clear: 'Our tenants need us more than ever. We can do this.'' And so, we did."

There were three practices that allowed Salem Terrace to maintain Gold Member status in WCCEAL:

1. Never wavering on the commitment to regulation-driven rules and best practices.
2. Staying positive to maintain a thriving community.
3. Thinking outside the box to support people during hardships.

While difficult at times to hold staff and tenants accountable to rules, such as staying in their apartments for extended periods, it was necessary to keep everyone safe. Leadership met daily to review new information and continuously updated rules and recommendations to ensure everyone's safety.

Positivity started at the top of the organization and leadership shared that positivity with staff and tenants. They maintained positivity by ensuring the community still felt like a community. They played hallway bingo, musicians performed outside, management played bells in hallways, and staff were gifted with goodies weekly.

Every team member worked tirelessly to ensure tenants remained safe, positivity showed through and, when faced with obstacles, they found their way through them, together.

The story of Shelby Terrace versus COVID is one of relentless commitment to the tenants. Staff put their own physical and mental health on the line to ensure the tenants lived their best possible life during the troubling times of isolation, uncertainty, and fear.

Shelby's staff isolated themselves from their own loved ones, all in the name of a commitment to caring. Some missed holidays and family events, all in the name of serving others first. Some had to take mandatory time off without pay due to COVID exposures and yet they stuck with their jobs because they truly cared about the tenants.

When there was an outbreak in the building, staff put their lives on hold, some working 14 days straight! Vacations were thrown aside as staff served the tenants at a high level.

The staff gave tenants as much 1:1 time as possible despite the challenges of social distancing. Staff ensured tenants' mental health needs were met in addition to their physical health. Staff reported they would go home and cry to themselves, overwhelmed with isolation -- isolation they chose because they are truly heroic and because they are relentlessly committed to the tenants.

St. Elizabeth Manor, CBRF, championed continued efforts to maintain Gold Member status in WCCEAL throughout the three years of the COVID-19 pandemic and unprecedented daily regulatory changes, visitation changes, workforce challenges, and beyond. St. Elizabeth Manor is particularly proud of their ability to continue to admit both laypersons and fulfill the need to admit Dominican Sisters in need of assisted living in the midst of the pandemic realities.

St. Elizabeth Manor is located in Footville, Wisconsin -- a small rural town of less than 800 people. The dedicated staff made up of many area farm families was the key to providing consistent, resident-centered, high-quality care. These staff members sacrificed time caring for their own families including, for some, being always present for their children attending school virtually, to continue to provide their loving care to the residents at St. Elizabeth Manor – residents whom they consider their family.

Water's Edge Assisted Living made it a priority to maintain high quality standards during the three years of COVID restrictions and the continuously changing protocols.

Staff at Water's Edge never laid down best practices but forged ahead despite COVID. They set up a rigorous screening protocol so they could allow family members to visit during the pandemic. They provided frequent updates to keep tenants and families informed. They immediately implemented iPads to keep tenants connected with their families and with their medical team.

During the COVID pandemic, staff discovered that with fewer activities came less movement for the tenants. They quickly turned their awareness to the fact that the tenants were having a decrease in strength and increase in weakness, and fall numbers started to climb. At this point, they held a Falls Kaizen to increase the visibility of fall risk to all caregivers and increase the richness of conversation within their daily staff huddles around falls, with a goal to have a 30% fall reduction. With this implementation, they met and exceeded their goal by cutting their number of falls in half!