thenursingschool

The resident will probably get up at 7:30 to be ready for breakfast at 8:30. Then residents will wait to be served and to drink their cup of coffee or tea in the dining room. After that they will all leave the dining room and go back to their rooms or sit in the foyer. If there are any activities the resident will wait to take part in them. If there are not s/he will probably wait for her/his son or daughter, not wanting to go anywhere to make sure they can find her/him.

In her room she will probably try to read if she is still able to do this or she can play solitaire, knits, watches TV. An ordinary day. It is rare to visit another resident in their rooms. And nobody will come to her/his room. S/he does not meet anybody to talk with. How long can s/he stay in that silence? S/he will probably exchange greetings with the nurses or glances and laughs with some residents, but most of the time s/he will be on her/his own.

Lunch is a similar pattern as breakfast. The pills, the waiting, the conversations with residents and smiles of the nurses. Afternoon, much the same as the morning, probably s/he will take a nap. Maybe she will wait for someone to help her on and off the toilet. There will be plenty of activities – listening to music, the bingo, tea with a friend. They could exchange gossip about residents or the staff.

S/he will have her/his daughter or son on a short visit or an old friend will call once in a while to ask her/him how s/he is. This will warm her heart for awhile. S/he may remember their names. Nurses will tell her/him that their son has left and s/he may not remember that he has been there at all and even think aloud that no one comes to see her. S/he may even think aloud why she is still living and ask herself what is there to live for.

On an ordinary day the nurses and the nurse’s aides may come and sit down next to her. They can talk to her, try to get through to her. They are those who help her choose her clothes, change her, bathe her etc. They will probably tell her something, they will vaguely recall the words of her/his son or daughter. S/he will enjoy this friendly little chat and then s/he will see them wave her goodbye. S/he will probably even try to remember them for a while.

Then s/he will wait for the doors to open to go down for a dinner. S/he will enjoy the food – good, warm, nourishing – a symbolic message that she is cared for and safe. After dinner, s/he gets back again to their rooms. The nursing home is quite, minimal staff, all residents in their rooms. Probably some activities – Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, reading, phone calls. The staff will help her/him to change, to wash and go to the toilet. And then to the bed but the nights can be really long. At 5:00 or 6:00 a.m. she is already ready to get up again.

Certainly, the experience of being resident of a care facility varies enormously but this could be an ordinary day in a nursing home.