On April 6, Margaret Roper found out her 93-year-old mother, Iris Roper, was diagnosed with COVID-19.
Iris was a resident of the Chartwell Ballycliffe Long Term Care Residence in Ajax, Ontario. On April 12, the care facility announced four residents had died of COVID-19, and another 25 residents and staff had confirmed cases.
Margaret and the rest of her family were unable to see Iris — Ballycliffe was closed to visitors since mid-March — and the facility’s nurses and personal support workers were too busy to use their phones to allow the family to do video chats.
“I know they were pretty stressed with the pandemic,” Margaret Roper told the National Post.
Finally, Roper went to visit her mother at Ballycliffe. Since they weren’t allowed inside, Roper visited her through the window of her ground-floor room. Roper could see her, but Iris wasn’t very responsive — it seemed as though her eyes weren’t focusing. The nurses later told her many of the residents who were diagnosed with coronavirus were lethargic.
“It was heartbreaking,” Roper said.
But there was some light.
On April 17 — the day the facility notified Iris’ family that she had been placed in palliative care — Margaret’s sister was standing by the window when she saw a man attending to her mother. According to Margaret, he began to wave his phone with his number visible and she called it.
“He put the phone close to her ear and she was able to chat with mom,” Margaret said. “All of a sudden, she clapped her hands.”
The next day, Margaret and a few family members visited, and, hearing about her sister’s experience the day before, went to ask the front desk if anybody was available to phone them into Iris’ room, but to no avail.
But Margaret said that when she returned, the man was in her mother’s room again. They gave him a call and she says the family was able to say their goodbyes as the man held Iris’ hand.
You are not just the maintenance guy, you are a saint for your kindness
Before hanging up, Margaret asked if she could speak with the man.
“I said thank you for attending to my mom,” she said. “Are you a PSW or a nurse? He looked around and said ‘No, I’m just the maintenance guy.’
“I said ‘No sir, you are not just the maintenance guy, you are a saint for your kindness.’”
Sharon Ranalli, vice president of marketing & communications at Chartwell Retirement Residences, which manages Ballycliffe, told the National Post the employee was not available for comment. He is “a very humble man.”
“Our staff are working to not only offer care but also, as you heard about at Chartwell Ballycliffe, compassion, support and kindness. Our employees are very special people,” she said.
Iris Roper died on April 20 while listening to big band music — her favourite — on the radio, but Margaret and some relatives were allowed to be by her side.
“She had a peaceful passing,” Margaret Roper said.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vbmF0aW9uYWxwb3N0LmNvbS9uZXdzL2NhbmFkYS9mYW1pbHktdGhhbmtzLW1haW50ZW5hbmNlLWVtcGxveWVlLWZvci1jb21mb3J0aW5nLWR5aW5nLW1vdGhlci1pbi1sb25nLXRlcm0tY2FyZS1mYWNpbGl0edIBggFodHRwczovL25hdGlvbmFscG9zdC5jb20vbmV3cy9jYW5hZGEvZmFtaWx5LXRoYW5rcy1tYWludGVuYW5jZS1lbXBsb3llZS1mb3ItY29tZm9ydGluZy1keWluZy1tb3RoZXItaW4tbG9uZy10ZXJtLWNhcmUtZmFjaWxpdHkvYW1w?oc=5
2020-04-26 14:00:00Z
CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vbmF0aW9uYWxwb3N0LmNvbS9uZXdzL2NhbmFkYS9mYW1pbHktdGhhbmtzLW1haW50ZW5hbmNlLWVtcGxveWVlLWZvci1jb21mb3J0aW5nLWR5aW5nLW1vdGhlci1pbi1sb25nLXRlcm0tY2FyZS1mYWNpbGl0edIBggFodHRwczovL25hdGlvbmFscG9zdC5jb20vbmV3cy9jYW5hZGEvZmFtaWx5LXRoYW5rcy1tYWludGVuYW5jZS1lbXBsb3llZS1mb3ItY29tZm9ydGluZy1keWluZy1tb3RoZXItaW4tbG9uZy10ZXJtLWNhcmUtZmFjaWxpdHkvYW1w
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