{"id":244113,"date":"2020-04-11T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-11T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/244113\/retirement-villages-take-the-necessary-steps-to-protect-residents-and-staff\/"},"modified":"2020-04-10T14:24:46","modified_gmt":"2020-04-10T12:24:46","slug":"retirement-villages-take-the-necessary-steps-to-protect-residents-and-staff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/news-headlines\/2020\/04\/11\/retirement-villages-take-the-necessary-steps-to-protect-residents-and-staff\/","title":{"rendered":"Retirement villages take the necessary steps to protect residents and staff"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Methodist Homes and Rand Aid Association took stringent measures to protect their elderly residents and staff during the Covid-19 pandemic and nationwide lockdown.<\/p>\n<p>Methodist Homes for the Aged general manager Lynda Erasmus ensures the homes have a massive responsibility in protecting not only their elderly residents, but also their staff who provide vital care and essential services to the residents during the pandemic.<\/p><div class=\"stream-item stream-item-in-post stream-item-inline-post aligncenter\"><\/div>\n<p>\u201cTo ensure optimal and seamless functioning during the national lockdown, Methodist Homes continues to roll out a series of stringent measures at its 15 retirement villages in Gauteng and the North West Province,\u201d said Erasmus.<\/p>\n<p>According to Erasmus, all essential service staff, including kitchen personnel, cleaners, etc., has been issued with letters confirming their status in order to allow them to travel during national lockdown.<\/p><div class=\"stream-item stream-item-in-post stream-item-inline-post aligncenter\"><\/div>\n<p>No visitors, including family members and service providers like hairdressers, podiatrists, etc., will be allowed into the care centres.<\/p>\n<p>To limit access to the villages by private carers, Erasmus said arrangements have been made for carers to sleep in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll residents and staff are screened and assessed every day,\u201d said Erasmus.<\/p>\n<p>She included all care centre work phones have WhatsApp and the numbers communicated to family members who can either voice or video call their family members.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe also recognise the importance of residents\u2019 mental health during the lockdown.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Staff will ensure there are plenty of activities to keep residents occupied and stimulated.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Residents will also be pampered by the staff by getting their nails done, receiving hand massages and having their hair washed,\u201d said Erasmus.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_244115\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-244115\" style=\"width: 520px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-244115\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2020\/03\/PRPhoto3_05631-520x390.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"520\" height=\"390\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dwu32cgxelq1c.cloudfront.net\/local_newspapers\/sites\/31\/2020\/03\/PRPhoto3_05631-520x390.jpg 520w, https:\/\/dwu32cgxelq1c.cloudfront.net\/local_newspapers\/sites\/31\/2020\/03\/PRPhoto3_05631-270x203.jpg 270w, https:\/\/dwu32cgxelq1c.cloudfront.net\/local_newspapers\/sites\/31\/2020\/03\/PRPhoto3_05631-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dwu32cgxelq1c.cloudfront.net\/local_newspapers\/sites\/31\/2020\/03\/PRPhoto3_05631.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 520px) 100vw, 520px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-244115\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Methodist Homes: Arbor Village has live-in staff during the Covid-19 21-day lockdown.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Methodist Homes fully supports the nationwide lockdown, which is in the interest of every person in South Africa, and pledges to continue providing uninterrupted, top quality, professional care to all its residents.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe assure family and loved ones every precaution has been taken to protect the well-being of all residents and staff,\u201d said Erasmus.<\/p>\n<p>Bedfordview\u2019s Methodist Homes: Arbor Village manager Denise Stanton corroborates residents have understood and support the measures the home has put in place for their own safety.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs always, they are cooperative. Those who want to can go to family, but would need to self-isolate for 14 days thereafter,\u201d said Stanton.<\/p>\n<p>Before the lockdown, Stanton mentioned residents at Arbor Village have not experienced any stress or obstacles while shopping.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI urge everyone to listen to the guidelines the government has laid down for the people of South Africa; it\u2019s for your own good.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Also, if you know any elderly residents phone them during this time and if they are not in a village like Arbor Village where there is help, offer to do their shopping or pick up their medicine,&#8221; said Stanton.<\/p>\n<p>At the moment, Stanton said the village has everything under control, but will ask the community if assistance is needed.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000\">ALSO READ:<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/245900\/police-donate-food-to-community-members-in-need\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Covid-19: Police donate food to community members in need<\/a><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/244908\/germiston-red-cross-cares-for-the-vulnerable-during-lockdown\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Covid-19: Germiston Red Cross cares for the vulnerable during lockdown<\/a><\/h4>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Rand Aid Association has also implemented measures to protect their residents and staff of Rand Aid\u2019s retirement villages, care centres and substance abuse treatment centres from infection, including restricting non-essential visitor access.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs older persons face increased risks of complications from Covid-19, it is critical for Rand Aid to respond with urgency and the seriousness required,\u201d said Peter Quinn, CEO of Rand Aid situated on Modderfontein Road.<\/p>\n<p>The association has several retirement facilities in Edenvale and Modderfontein areas, including Inyoni Creek Retirement Village, Thornhill Manor, Elphin Lodge and Ron Smith Care Centre.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are taking the pandemic very seriously. While some of the measures we have implemented may be restrictive and inconvenient, they are very necessary if we are to minimise the impact of the virus on the Rand Aid community,\u201d said Quinn.<\/p>\n<p>He added measures will be assessed on a weekly basis and adapted based on medical advice during the lockdown.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>*Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Dear reader,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as \u201cfake news\u201d) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Readers with any comments or queries may contact national group editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or legal adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>Hav<\/strong><strong>e a story?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">Contact the newsroom by emailing: Melissa Hart (Editor)<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><strong><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-admin\/germistoncitynews@caxton.co.za\">germistoncitynews@caxton.co.za,<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>Leigh Hodgson (News Editor)<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><strong><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"mailto:leighh@caxton.co.za\">leighh@caxton.co.za\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>or Busi Vilakazi (Journalist)\u00a0<a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"mailto:busiv@caxton.co.za\"><strong>busiv@caxton.co.za.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">Also follow us on:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/germistoncitynews\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-210323\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2019\/07\/Facebook.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"62\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GCNnews?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-210324\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2019\/07\/Twitter.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"62\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/germistoncitynews\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-210325\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2019\/07\/Instagram.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"62\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCblgxW6BRXTLGLQvpcumLqA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-210326 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2019\/07\/youtube.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"62\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"anchor_post\" href=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/newsletter-signup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-210327 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2019\/07\/Newsletter.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"62\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"clearfix\" style=\"text-align: center\"><\/div>\n<\/p><div class=\"stream-item stream-item-below-post-content\">\n<div class='tenancy_slot tenancy_slot_1 jannah_ad' style='display: none;' data-query-id='70a3cb19e6d024b612dac2c181f77da0'><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cFrailty, underlying medical conditions and comorbidity, which is the presence of more than one disorder in the same person, increase the risks of older persons becoming critically ill from Covid-19,\u201d said Dr Carmella Mielke, who practises at Rand Aid\u2019s Elphin Lodge Complex.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1848,"featured_media":244114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"hasGravity":false,"cxt_article_byline":"Miguel Abrahams","cxt_disable_google_ads":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,2],"tags":[30938,30940,30939,1881,8589,979,969,30942,30937,30936,18295,8364,1774,30941,30944,30943],"class_list":["post-244113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-news-headlines","tag-arbor-village-bedfordview","tag-covid-19-bedfordview","tag-covid-19-elderly","tag-edenvale","tag-elphin-lodge","tag-germiston","tag-germiston-city-news","tag-inyoni-creek-retirement-village","tag-methodist-homes-arbor-village","tag-methodist-homes-for-the-aged","tag-miguel-abrahams","tag-modderfontein","tag-prim-villa","tag-rand-aid-association","tag-ron-smith-care-centre","tag-thornhill-manor"],"amp_enabled":true,"category_labels":{"Category":"News","SubCategory":"Local news"},"tag_labels":["arbor village bedfordview","covid 19 bedfordview","covid 19 elderly","edenvale","elphin lodge","germiston","germiston city news","inyoni creek retirement village","methodist homes arbor village","methodist homes for the aged","Miguel Abrahams","modderfontein","Prim Villa","rand aid association","ron smith care centre","thornhill 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