Residential Homes: Coping with COVID-19 - December 2020

This year, things are a little bit different for our Residential Homes groups at Bromsgrove. In order to continue giving back to our community, many of our services have adapted to come in line with government restrictions and Residential Homes is no different. We decided to interview the Upper Sixth St. John’s Residential Home group (pictured below) in order to gain a better perspective of the measures taken to keep in contact with the Residents.



How does the activity operate this year compared to last year?
Obviously, they haven’t been able to go to the residential homes, however they have found alternative ways to interact with the residents. They have been making things for the residents and sending items to them, for example, making board games and cards for the residents. Furthermore, many are pen pals with the residents and have also made Tik Toks for them.

Why did you choose this activity this year, and have you done it before?
Someone stated because they’re a “kind person,” the majority of students do it as “it helps medical applications”. People also said that they enjoy the activity as it is a “rewarding activity” and makes them feel happy to help out the residents. The students also explained to us that they enjoy “gaining wisdom and listening to their stories”.

We asked the students if they felt like they were giving back to the residents.
They said “Yes, however, they don’t get much feedback or many responses from the residents due to the restrictions.” The students would prefer it if they could have some feedback in order to determine if they could be doing something better to help the residents.

What sort of challenges have you had to overcome this year?
The students' main challenge is the fact that they don’t “receive any feedback and it feels like they work without the rewarding feel. We also miss getting to chat with the residents, it is difficult to chat with them since the coronavirus period.”

What’s your like relationship with the residents?
“While it is not as good as it used to be last year, we try to keep in contact with them via letters and emails.”
  
How do you think this experience will benefit you in the future?
It is “good for university applications”, especially those doing medicine.

It “makes you a caring citizen”.

How do the residents feel about the current situation?
By this point, we haven’t had any feedback from residents. However,  we do get emails and letters from them.

"I haven't had any feedback from residents that they appreciate it in general."

What do you want to do/say when the activity resumes back to normal?
"Speak to the residents and just be there in person", however, it feels they have done more for the residents than before, and miss the interactions.

An in depth look at Residential Homes by Harmonie D-U (Burcot group)
One of the activities we engaged in to make up for our inability to visit the residents was to gain a pen pal. The way this was conducted was that some of the ‘pals’ sent in their names and what they were interested in, for example, a nice lady who enjoyed gardening, loved listening to music became my pen pal because of her love for Africa. She stated that she really wanted to visit an African country one day and as an African, I thought it was relevant if I befriended her. This way, until the day she would be able to visit an African country, she would have a person who could communicate her love for the continent. We also made magazines where everyone had to contribute. One of the members made a comic strip. For our last activity, “7 days till the new year” and in preparation for the upcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations, each member of the group was given a task to make a small gift that would be placed in a box. Seven boxes for seven days, and on each day from the 25th of December (Christmas) till New Years, the residents could open a box to reveal the presents inside.

Below is an example of a board game produced by one of the groups:



It appears that overall, each group has adapted well to the current global situation this term, as proved by their efforts and innovative ideas when it comes to the activity.