Ideas To Ease Pandemic Fatigue Among Staff and Residents

Published 1/6/2021

As the country continues to battle COVID-19, pandemic fatigue has become a significant concern, adding another component to the fight against the coronavirus. Folks across all walks of life are exhausted by the ongoing restrictions, the worry, and the unknown implications surrounding the virus. But nowhere is pandemic fatigue a more serious complication than among the staff and residents of nursing homes.

As facilities seek to protect this most vulnerable population, the loneliness and isolation for patients and the worry and exhaustion experienced by staff members have risen to dangerously high levels. The toll taken on physical, emotional, and mental health has management teams brainstorming how to help staff and residents cope with this ongoing scenario.

Sherry Thomas, Director of Clinical Services for LeaderStat, joins us to share practical strategies that can fortify the troops and inspire residents to keep going.

When it comes to taking care of the facility’s staff, Thomas suggests several ways to break up the mundane daily routine and inject some fun into each day.

• Order in food for the staff such as weekly boxed lunches and maintain a stocked supply of snacks
• Offer restaurant gift cards to allow more time for relaxation on their days off
• Award small gifts for silly little reasons such as—
    - the 20^th temperature screen of the day
    - to everyone whose middle name begins with a particular letter
    - the wearer of the most colorful socks
• Brainstorm ways to keep important tasks fun such as requesting titles of old songs (say from the 60s-90s) that can be sung in 20 seconds during hand washing
• Post an encouraging, inspirational quote weekly at the screening station to remind the staff how appreciated they are

For many long-term care residents, the past ten months represent the loneliest season of their lives. Anything the care team can do to brighten their spirits can bring some much-needed light and energy into their existence. Thomas offers these suggestions—

• Consider how music therapy can usher in the sense of calmness and fill long stretches of time
• Assist them with virtual/zoom calls as many may feel this type of technology is too challenging to master
• If residents can sit in their doorways, enlist the staff to be entertainers – line dancing, singalongs, a costume contest, etc.
• Keep residents updated on things that bring hope, such as the very positive news about vaccines being rolled out
• If place markers for social distancing are being utilized, make them fun, such as using Disney characters to mark each spot

Encourage staff and patients to be there for each other during these challenging times, harnessing the power of unity and teamwork to ward off the harmful effects of unchecked pandemic fatigue. And we can all look forward to the months ahead as the vaccine is distributed across the country bringing brighter days.

*This content is based on information available as of 1/6/21.