How have you volunteered at a nursing home?

I play the piano for an hour one afternoon a week. Favorite hymns, gospel music. I also read to different people with vision problems. They choose.

NeedHelp: Truth! Just about the time when I was "running on fumes" in my effort to help my mother, this gentleman gave me the positive boost that I needed. Quite honestly, he was an EXEMPLARY human being when he had every right not to be! Some of my conversations with him involved the quite recent loss of one of his legs. Thank you for your kind words.

Llama,

Some people truly are an inspiration! We need more in this world with the attitude like the man you knew.

Imho, there was a patient at the NH that my late mother was at. He was a recent amputee of one of his legs, but he volunteered to aide other patients in any way he could! This man was one of the most positive people I have ever met. Every night when I had to leave the NH and my mother to go back to her house, he would come to my mother's bedside to hold her hand. He also aided many other residents. My first night at the NH when I was leaving at 1:00 A.M., he was outside to give me a cheery Hello. I was AMAZED by Mr. M-----.

Moddie,

Perfect! My mother loves lotions. My great aunt used to drown herself in Oil of Olay!

Their skin gets so dry.

jfb,

The Knights are awesome!

Whaley,

I’d like to hear you play! Sounds cool.

WhaleyF, you play a mountain dulcimer?   Ooooohhhh,  I am so  envious!

The only dulcimers I've heard are the hammered dulcimers, through the music and recordings of Maggie Sansone, as well as  a concert at a wonderful fall arts and crafts show.   

It was a perfect day and background for a dulcimer concern (with other instruments as well) ...ducks were swimming in the narrow stream that ran through the campgrounds, people were sitting on the ground enraptured by the music, and elsewhere vendors were selling their wares. 

It's where I met both of the herbal suppliers from whom I buy, where charming dogs accompany their owners, and where I once got to hug a big, drooly, affectionate and loveable Newfie.

I have gone with my church group and sang at nursing homes.... played ukulele at nursing homes, played my mountain dulcimer at one and as Ziggy the Traveling Balloon Lady I made balloon hats for the residents and staff at a nursing home. I think the staff liked the hats more than the residents. But my favorite.... was visiting with my mother in law and we were the only one in the lounge. Went out and got my mountain dulcimer and was playing old time music for her. Next thing I new the aides where racing to get wheel chairs down the hall and to us to hear the "concert". I spent over an hour taking request and just having a great time. Mother in law slept through it. LOL

I was diagnosed with Early onset ALZ one month before my 57th birthday. One of the activities I participated in was at Christmas time the Knights of Columbus Council I was in would hold Bingo once a month, and at Christmas time Santa Claus (me) would have pictures taken of me with each of the residents at the party. I distributed gifts that our Ladies Auxiliary had made or shopped for. Everybody walked away with something. Me a big smile, knowing it was important to bring some joy in to the residents lives, and they were all in to Santa. I am no longer capable of playing Santa.

On my visits to nursing homes and assisted living centers, I always take a bottle of hand lotion. I ask if the resident would like some “Love Lotion”. I gently rub it onto their hands. It gives me a chance to have a close encounter and give some tender love and attention. (Of course COVID has put a temporary stop to this.) Men and women both seem to like this a lot.

One thing to remember about donating socks is that some people have really big feet! My mom weighs just a little over 100 pounds and used to wear a size 11 shoe.

When edema happened with mom, size 11 became too small so I had to buy men’s socks that run larger, same with shoes.

I had to buy men’s tennis shoes because they were available in larger sizes. So I would say not to forget people with big feet.

Great idea to donate socks, JoAnn.

JoAnn,

I think socks is one of the number one request for the homeless. I didn’t realize it with the nursing homes. So true though about laundry losing socks! I do it all of the time. Hahaha 😂

Would you suggest non slip socks like my mom uses? That is what the occupational and physical therapist recommended for her.

My idea would be to find a resident who has no family or the family doesn't visit. Visit maybe the same day every week so they have something to look forward to. If they can have it, bring something you have baked. Send a card. Bring a book or magazine. If you knit or crochet, make a lap afghan. (Just make sure their name in in it. Laundry should be able to help with that)

Usually Medicaid recipients get an allowance from SS every month but its not much. My state its $50. Maybe find out what she needs clothing wise. Socks are a big thing. The more the better. They seem to be the last thing they fold. Think of it, hundreds of socks that have to be matched and made sure they get to the right person. Might need a new top or two. A nice bathrobe.

cwille,

You are so right about the children singing. I volunteered at my children’s schools.

I always said yes when the teacher asked me to chaperone my children’s preschool classes to sing Christmas carols to the residents at nearby nursing homes.

There was a beautiful grand piano in the lounge area where the teacher would play lovely holiday music. The children loved it as much as the residents of the home.

At Mardi Gras time we had the seniors up and dancing along because we had parades and marched through the home! Hahaha, I forgot about that until just now.

We threw beads and trinkets to them. Many of the seniors loved Mardi Gras in their youth and loved our parade performances.

We made costumes for the kids. Of course, we played music for that too to do our famous, ‘Second Line!’ It’s part of New Orleans culture.

So many smiles from the seniors and lots of hugs for the children too! It was a win win situation!

Pet visits are so special!

Your posting on music gave me goosebumps!

What a special treat for them and you! Music feeds the soul. It truly does. It’s stimulating too. I like to exercise to music. It’s boring without it!

Music is something we can all take pleasure in together or enjoy alone. I love people but I cherish my solitude as well. Music and literature enhances our lives in so many ways.

So bravo to you and Margaret for volunteering in this manner. Did you read where Margaret not only read to residents but sang to them as well? Our voices are instruments too!

I can’t even count how many times I was comforted by music or simply enjoyed as entertainment! There is enough music to satisfy everyone’s taste!

I adore listening to music. It’s truly therapeutic, it’s lifts us up when we are down, it brings us joy, it’s soothing, it reflects our feelings, it causes us to feel emotions, etc.

Good for you, GA! You brought tremendous joy to those residents 😊. I feel joy just hearing about it. Thanks for sharing your talents and telling us about it.

Just remembered pet therapy.   At our final facility, before Dad's passing, the DON had a wonderful, friendly dog who accompanied her to work on most days.    She also made rounds with her human mom.    She was a regular fixture, and I'm sure others cherished her visits as much as Dad and I did.

Great thread, and great idea!   

Our first experience with placement was for Mom's rehab after breaking a leg.   She loved music, so I brought bundles of sheet music, took her and a friend she had made while there downstairs to the music room, and played.   

I hadn't practiced a lot at the time, but still the residents rolled their wheelchairs into the music room and listened.   It was gratifying but also heartbreaking to see so many lonely people.

That continued when my father had his long 7 month recovery.   The facility had 4 pianos, including a player piano in the activities room and one in the memory care unit.   I played the baby grand in the dining room.

Dad and I liked classical and semiclassical so I played some of our favorites.   But I was really pleased when I saw the reaction to old songs, like Little Brown Jug, Bicycle Built for Two, and more.    Some of the people sang, others tapped their feet.   One other visitor conducted a solo waltz when I played the Black Hawk Waltz.

But the real climax was when I played the Marine Corps Hymn.   Men suddenly stood or sat up ramrod straight, saluted, and sang along with my playing.  It was really emotional, and still is when I remember those times.

NeedHelpWithMom, I'm really glad you posted this b/c I had literally forgotten all about the "concerts".    I enjoyed them, and I need to start practicing so I can play again once the pandemic is either under control or, better yet, over.

It's my opinion that there needs to be somebody who can take charge and organize volunteer activities, either the paid activities director or some kind of overall volunteer organization, that was (and still is) woefully lacking at the local NH. People shouldn't be expected to just come in and do their own thing because IMO that can lead to very uneven distribution of time and talents - for example some volunteers used to come and walk with some of the residents, but nobody ensured that the quieter, less in-your-face needy people ever got any attention.

The one thing that was always popular at mom's NH was some kind of musical program, it didn't matter if it was paid professionals, little kids singing nursery songs or even the sing-a-long with the dreadfully tone deaf activities director, everybody perked up when there was music.

Margaret,

Yes, that is what I do! I listen as I am driving. A reader just read Grapes of Wrath. It’s wonderful to hear books read to us.

I remember doing a session on our own local radio station for the blind, which usually focused in reading the news and the newspaper's list of births, marriages and deaths. It's also a good option for people who are driving, because the finer points of music are often lost and speech is much easier to go with.

Margaret,

That’s awesome! Many seniors loose their eyesight and this is a wonderful service that you are providing.

In our city we have a radio station that reads to the blind. It’s nonprofit and all of the readers are volunteers.

They read fiction and nonfiction best sellers plus many magazines, several newspapers, articles from medical journals, etc. Just as many sighted people listen to the station. I do from time to time and enjoy it immensely.

Good for you!

I volunteered at the nursing home section of our small regional hospital, by reading to the residents once a month on the first Tuesday of the month. It was optional for them to turn up, and it took a bit of planning for me to find things that would be interesting for them and also within their attention span. I used a mixture of self-contained chapters from a book (short stories were usually too long), poetry, and bits of the Bible that they would be familiar with. I’m not bashful, so sometimes I sang the poetry that was set to music. I enjoyed it, and I hope they did too. Occasionally it was difficult when there were respite residents or relatives, much less tolerant, or people who insisted on watching the TV in the same room. I’m not quite sure why I stopped! Perhaps I need to start again.

Great idea. Yes, my kids have volunteered with their school too.

Yes with a church youth group when I was a teen, with my Girl Scouts as an adult. We mostly sang, did silly plays, hang out and played games.

I think all youths should volunteer in nursing homes, and the community my daughters high school has a whole class on just community service it’s also a civics class.

volunteering is good for the soul