Outings Article Part 6
Outings are a lot of work; however, the rewards far outweigh the work. Think back to a vacation you took that did not go how you planned. We went on a cruise to Alaska where I was supposed to be a speaker for an activity conference. I was their opening speaker on Sunday. I was more concerned with making sure my computer and handouts stayed with me in my carryon. My suit was in my checked luggage. When we arrived in Washington, we were informed that our luggage had been mistakenly put on the wrong plane to Washington. That plane wasn’t due to land till 5. The boat was leaving at 5. They said no problem we can put it on a plane, and you can pick it up at your first port. Perfect, well almost considering our first port would be Monday night. Needless to say I carried on as any activity professional would do. I presented in my Ohio State sweatsuit as that was the only outfit I had put in my carryon.
It doesn’t matter how much planning we do, we can never plan for everything that could possibly go wrong. It is how we respond that really matters most. There are things we have no control over. Some of these things can include: traffic accidents, bad weather, a flat tire, animals running out in front of the van, someone getting sick, someone having a heart attack/stroke/seizure, someone falling or someone’s sugar dropping or going really high. If we are aware that things can happen, we can put a plan in place to let us know how to respond. Over the years I’ve learned how to make sure I have a plan to respond.
One facility I worked at didn’t have a van. We actually had a station wagon. (This was in the 1990s). My assistant took the residents out for a drive and ice cream. The engine literally blew up while they were out. Thankfully no one was hurt and the station wagon came to a stop right in front of a ice cream shop. My assistant handled if very well. She got everyone’s ice cream order and then asked to use their phone to call the facility. Yes this was before cell phones. The residents talked about this for months after that. They said that this was the most fun they had had in years.
One place I worked we took the residents to a Cincinnati Reds game every year. This was my very first big outing and I was told that when you go on big outings make sure everyone wears the same color shirt with the facility name on it. I told my administrator and they thought that was an awesome idea. My boss had me get everyone’s sizes and he would put the order in. The shirts came in and I made sure everyone had their size and I even put their names on the tag. I made sure staff knew who was going and what they should be wearing that day. Game day came and we all matched. Perfect or so I thought. We unloaded the vans and got everyone through the gates and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Yes everyone had on a red facility shirt and our company logo. Can you guess what color the Cincinnati Reds color is? YEP, RED. We blended in very well. The next year we got neon orange shirts.
After a couple of years of taking several vans to the Reds game, we started doing fund raisers to raise money to rent a charter bus. This made it so much easier on planning and then I didn’t have to try and coordinate schedules with 3 other facilities and then find drivers for the vans. The charter van had a handicap lift. One year we had taken a lot of residents that were in wheelchairs. Somehow we had used the lift so much that the oil got to hot and started to boil and then started a fire. The charter bus filled up with smoke and we had to get everyone else off very quickly. Thankfully we had extra oxygen with us and we were able to make everyone was ok. The residents were still able to attend the game and had a great time. The lift could be used manually as well and the company had someone there who could help get everyone loaded after the game. The residents talked more about the man with big muscles that helped load them up after the game, than they did about the actually game.
One of the outings I planned was to the Henry Ford Musuem in Michigan. It was 3 hours from our facility. I did some searching and found a rest area about half way there. We stopped at the rest area on the way there and on the way home. I am always making sure my residents with wheelchairs and walkers have someone walking with them and paying attention to where we are walking or wheeling, especially up and down the ramps. One gentleman that never has any issues was walking behind me as I walked beside his wife who uses a walker. As we came around the corner to head to the van, I hear someone yell and then as I turn to see I year a thud and see this gentleman hit the sidewalk. He had caught his shoe on the edge of a landscaping brick that was sticking out. He had face planted in the sidewalk. He broke his nose. He ended up being fine and even refused to go to the hospital. His family was called and they also did not want him going to the hospital. His reason was that he had broken his nose before and he was hoping this break may straighten his nose up so it wasn’t crooked anymore.
We took the residents to the county fair. Seems pretty easy especially being so close to home. One lady really wanted to go but the aides were reluctant to let her go. They did not tell me why and I did not ask. It came time for a bathroom break. Several of our residents were capable of using the bathroom themselves. We just helped them into the stalls and wait outside the door of the stall in case they need something. After what seemed like an eternity my assistant opens the door to check on our lady. It became very clear why the aides were reluctant about letting her go. She had painted the bathroom stall. Thankfully we had gloves and wipes. From then on, I always asked aides what kind of help each person may need.
I had a resident that needed oxygen twenty-four seven. She wanted to go on a scenic drive with us and get some ice cream. However she was on a high amount of oxygen and would need to have her tank changed before we got back. No problem right? We can take and extra tank and secure it in the back. When it came time to change out tanks, I realized that the key I needed to shut one tank off and turn the other one on, was not hanging on the extra tank. This is when I went to my Director of Nursing and asked if I could have a key to keep in my supply bag that I take on every outing.
There are times when we go on outings that a resident will ask to drive by their homes, families homes or places they used to work. One such outing one of my ladies asked to drive by her house. Of course we can do that, I’ve done it so many times before. She told me exactly how to get there and as we drove by her house, she noticed that there was a sign in her yard. She said “my house isn’t for sale, is it? They told me I could go home.” I realized that from then on I was going to need to make sure it was safe to drive them by their homes.
We entered the county fair parade. We got a trailer with sides on it and got it all decorated up. It was a beautiful day. Well it started out as a beautiful day. Then all of a sudden it got really hot out. We had water, but it wasn’t enough to cool one of my residents down. She had Congestive Heart Failure. She was struggling to breathe. Thankfully it was towards the end of the parade. We unloaded her first and put her in my car and turned the air on high. We did have extra oxygen with us so we put that on her and after about 10 minutes she was fine. We were able to load her in the van and she was ready to go get lunch. Great news is we won 2ndplace in the parade for our division.
One incident that took place was at the fair
We took our residents to the Ark in Kentucky. I planned for one volunteer per resident going for this outing. I made sure we had enough wheelchairs for everyone that needed one and then extra’s for those I thought might need one. One lady, who liked to walk but had back issues also had a wheelchair. It was time for a bathroom break. There were 40 people that went on this outing. We did not all stay together but had meeting places a certain times. As we were in the bathroom this resident was done and sitting in her wheelchair. Another resident was having issues getting off the toilet as it was pretty low. The aide that was helping that resident asked the aide that was standing by the lady in the wheelchair to help. They were all in the restroom together. The aide went to the stall to help and when she turned back around, the only thing sitting there was the wheelchair. Thankfully when she walked out of the bathroom she wondered by another group and they had her stay with them. This is when cellphones are so very handy. Several calls were made and she was located very quickly.
One of the biggest problems I ever had was handicap accessible bathrooms. I always call ahead and if possible go visit the facility to make sure it’s handicap accessible. Believe it or not, sometimes facilities are advertised as handicap accessible but they are not. My residents requested to attend a Shoji Tabuchi Concert. I had never heard of him so I had to look it up. He is a famous violinist. I found a venue in Columbus Ohio that had him booked to play. I called the facility and asked all my questions. Are you handicap accessible? Are you able to handle larger wheelchairs? Do you have any steps into the facility or in your dining area? Do you accommodate special diets? They assured me they were handicap accessible. I explain very explicitly that I have several residents that cannot do steps and they need bars in the restroom. Again she assured me that they could accommodate us. When we got to the facility and I saw where the dining room area was, I was immediately concerned. It was a recessed sitting area in front of the stage. They had us sitting clear in the back in an area that did not need to go down the stairs. They could barely see the stage. Then came my big surprise. The bathrooms had been “remodeled” to accommodate wheelchairs. The doorways were about 26 inch openings but it was like a maze to get in. I had to slide the back wheels sideways to get them in. Walkers did not fit very well either. Then we get to the handicap stall. They had taken a regular stall and extended it out. A wheelchair fit in the stall but you couldn’t turn the wheelchair sideways to transfer them to the toilet. As if that wasn’t bad enough, one of my gentlemen were in a bariatric wheelchair. When I finally got everyone else taken care of, I saw his wife’s face. She was fuming. I went to find out what was wrong. Apparently he had to go to the bathroom and the staff had informed him they had no restroom that would accommodate him. We finally got a hold of management, and they were able to find us a room to take him to so he could use a urinal. This facility was 2 hours away and I didn’t think I needed to drive to check it out. I thought wrong. The only good thing about this whole trip was because of the restroom issue, my residents were sitting just inside the facility around the fountain waiting for everyone to finish going to the restroom. And who should walk out into the area? You guessed it, Mr. Shoji Tachuchi himself. Everyone of my residents sitting out there waiting, hit him up for a picture and he very graciously accommodated them.
Even with the not so pleasant issues I’ve experienced, I have learned that my response dictates how my volunteers, staff and residents react. Outings have a huge impact on the residents quality of life. We help them create so many memories to share with family and friends. They may not remember where they went, but they always seem to remember they had a lot of fun.
Tammy Point NAAP Leadership Team
