Although the doors are shut tightly at Sampson County’s Adult Day Care center, seniors who have frequented the facility should not be too worried because Sampson County Senior Services Director Dana Hall confirmed Wednesday in a phone interview that the closure is only temporary.
In fact, she said, the doors should open again next month.
What happened? According to Hall, employee shortages made it impossible to serve residents.
The center was already looking for a registered nurse when its fill-in nurse had some family health concerns arise, and the center director gave her two-week notice. Hall said there was no choice but to close temporarily.
“We have to have a nurse on site four hours a day in order to stay operational,” Hall shared, naming that as one of the legal requirements to be a licensed center due to the medical care provided as part of the program.
The director continued, explaining that she and her team have already received a strong pool of applicants for the position, and they are hopeful they will have everything needed in place to reopen the center in October.
When asked if that meant the nursing position application was closed, Hall emphasized, “While I think we’ll hire somebody out of this pool of applicants, I hate to tell you the position is filled because we are always looking for good applicants for part-time/back-up RNs.”
Because of the necessity of having a nurse present each day, it is imperative to not only have a daily nurse but to have backups to call in order to avoid center closures, Hall shared.
The director stressed that the focus has been on getting a nurse because that position is so crucial to reopening, but the application for the center director is open online, and Senior Services is receiving applicants for that position as well.
“This position involves supervising a couple positions,” Hall explained, adding communication with clients’ families, ensuring the center is complying with licensure standards and activity coordination as key parts of the role.
Hall said she wanted to stress the importance of the service the Adult Day Care center provides when asked if there was anything she wanted the community to know about the center closure and what her department is doing to get it reopened.
“Our clients are 60-plus who can’t stay home alone because they need help with things, whether that be medication, meals, or maybe they have trouble ambulating,” Hall described, adding, “the Adult Day Care is respite care for our clients’ families.”
She shared that some caregivers still work, and this provides a safe place for their family member to receive the care they need.
While at the center, clients receive breakfast, lunch and a snack, some health care and planned activities.
Hall explained that clients are not locked into coming all five days.
“You can come just two days,” the director stressed.
“We were hit during COVID,” Hall went on to explain, saying that because of the vulnerable population the center serves, caution was necessary when navigating client safety during the pandemic.
“Our clients were so upset about not getting to come (during the pandemic),” Hall emphasized, adding that “often when clients have to be hospitalized due to sickness, their drive to get better is to come back (to the adult day care program).”
At the center, “we have wonderful staff who take care of clients like they are their own family,” Hall stressed.
The director described all that the center does to keep its clients both mentally and physically active.
“They talk about what’s going on in the world,” Hall said, with staff asking each client, “How do you feel about that?”
She shared that clients are led in armchair drumming and Olympics activities, while the fenced-in yard provides opportunities for clients to spend time outside and enjoy the flowers and vegetables in the gardens seasonally. Hall added that clients are given independence when possible and that the fenced-in yard provides the freedom for that.
Sampson Area Transit provides transportation to the center, which Hall listed as another way for clients to enjoy some independence while providing families with assistance getting their loved ones to and from the day care each day.
Hall is eager for the center to reopen, reiterating how vital a service it provides its clients, their families and the community at large.
Look for it to reopen its doors next month, she stressed.