By Kathryn Stocks
After a difficult winter with a COVID-19 outbreak and a challenging spring due to Ministry and Public Health directives, things are finally starting to return to normal at the Tony Stacey Centre as friends and family are able to meet inside again and small group activities have returned.
During the pandemic, staff at the home were busy with some much-needed improvements. They received grant funding from the Toronto Foundation to upgrade the air make-up unit on the roof, which brings in fresh air and helps with circulation in the building. They also took advantage of provincial government funding to purchase air conditioning units. Now all resident rooms and the two TV lounges are air conditioned.
Back in the spring of 2020, CCRA held a very successful fundraiser for the Stacey Centre that raised almost $23,000. We’re happy to report that this money has been used to buy 18 point-of-care iPads, which allow personal support workers to document a resident’s day from when they receive a shower to how much they have eaten to any changes in their daily routine.
Evy Lang, the Stacey Centre’s Manager of Operations, said, “Staff come in at the beginning of their shift and grab their iPads. Everything is electronically stored right on the spot and there’s no paper. The iPads are so much better.” Each resident’s information is accessible to the entire care team, she said, and recreation staff can use the iPads when they’re doing their assessment for residents.
The home also used some of the CCRA funds to obtain electronic medication administration record (eMAR) software for their computers. The computers on the nurses’ carts now alert them to when medications are due, as well as keep updates and documentation with their pharmacy provider.
According to Vito Greto, chair of the Stacey Centre board, these two programs provide more accurate and timely documentation, therefore allowing more time for additional care for each resident.
“The entire program was a costly one and additional infrastructure was required to ensure WiFi connectivity was up to par.” Vito said. “As you can imagine, they didn’t think of WiFi and tech 50 years ago! Without the CCRA’s generous donation we would not have been able to implement these great programs.”
But the home’s needs continue, and right now the Stacey Centre is looking to fundraise for electric beds, therapeutic mattresses and other medical equipment. They used to be able to raise money with large events like golf tournaments as well as small-scale fundraisers right in the home. Unfortunately, the pandemic has put all those on hold. “Fundraising has been very difficult due to COVID,” Evy said. “We can’t do anything right now.”
So they have chosen to try a GoFundMe page to raise $75,000 for the beds and mattresses. “It doesn’t cost anything to do a GoFundMe,” Evy said, “and we can do it all online.” This fundraiser is on now and can be accessed directly at gofund.me/7fe3f719 or at gofundme.com by entering “Tony Stacey Centre” in the search field. You can also find it on the Stacey Centre’s Facebook page. Because they are a not-for-profit home, all funds raised go directly to benefit the residents, and donors will receive tax receipts.