Posted: September 7, 2021
By: Julie Crozier
Similar to most other organizations, Rhythms Home Care is guided by our mission: We enrich the quality and dignity of life for older adults through services and care that reflect Christian love, respect, and compassion toward each individual.
And as is the case across businesses of every size, in every industry, our policies, procedures, rules and regulations are directed with our mission at the helm. Together, this set of standards keeps our organization and team members focused and aligned. Yet sometimes, the “how” of our day-to-day activities – those policies and procedures – can eclipse the “why” of our work –and mission. Every now and then, in order to be true partners in care with our clients, we need to think outside the box, remind ourselves of the “why,” and look at the big picture.
The year 2020 introduced new challenges for all of us. How can I effectively work from home? How can I best take care of my loved ones? At Rhythms Home Care, we experienced the challenge of balancing our mission to enrich the quality and dignity of life for older adults and commitment to providing personalized, quality care with the restrictions and protocols implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the community.
This had an impact on Mari Ann, whose challenge was finding a way to help her father navigate through the pandemic. Mari Ann’s dad John was living at Holly Creek, a Christian Living Community. Mari Ann knew that the isolation and uncertainty, combined with her dad’s anxiety, would be devastating for him. Before the restrictions brought on by COVID-19, Mari Ann visited her dad at Holly Creek regularly. Knowing that this would no longer be possible with new restrictions in place, Mari Ann reached out to Rhythms with an uncommon request.
As a company policy, Rhythms Home Care does not hire family members for the sole purpose of taking care of their loved ones because it would appear to be taking advantage of the situation for personal gain. However, upon hearing Mari Ann’s story, Rhythms’ Assistant Vice President Janice Crowley chose instead to take a step back and look at the big picture. She sought to understand this family’s unique circumstances in order to find a solution centered on John’s dignity and well-being. How often did Mari Ann visit her dad and what specific care did she provide? Could John receive this same level of care from someone else? After speaking at length with both Mari Ann and team members at Holly Creek, Janice learned that Mari Ann visited her dad every day, for hours at a time. John would become very anxious and only a visit from Mari Ann would calm him down.
Janice and the rest of the Rhythms Home Care and Holly Creek teams agreed that an exception needed to be made. In order to provide the most beneficial level of care for John, Mari Ann was hired on as a caregiver for her dad – her only client, of course!
Mari Ann was able to work and visit her dad every single day, and John was able to thrive through a very difficult time. Having Mari Ann as a Rhythms employee was not just a benefit for her and her father– she was a model employee for Rhythms, following all of our employment requirements. We feel fortunate to have had Mari Ann as our employee and to support her family in this unique way.
Please read this quote from Mari Ann:
“I am writing to let you know that I have decided to resign my employment at Rhythms Home Care. I am now able to check on my dad John regularly at Holly Creek as a normal visitor and he is doing wonderful.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to be a Personal Care Assistant for my dad for the last year. I know that you made a special exception to allow me to come to work for just my dad and I am so appreciative.
Because you were willing to be flexible and give me this opportunity my dad made it through a very difficult year.
We all look forward to the day when masks are no longer needed at Holly Creek and we can enjoy sitting around close to each other.
The team at Rhythms Home Care is one of the most professional, kind and well-organized groups I have ever been a part of. I will always highly recommend your services to anyone. Thank you again and God bless all of you,” Mari Ann.
© 2024 Rhythms Home Care
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