Source: Waikato District Health Board
A gift that really makes a difference is how staff at Morrinsville’s Rhoda Read Continuing Care facility described the donation of five televisions by the local RSA last month.
Charge Nurse Manager Gina Chaney said the 40” televisions had made a positive change for patients within days of their installation.
“They’ve made a huge difference, before they were installed patients in our single rooms could have a bit of a lonely time, especially when we were locked down over the COVID-19 period.
“That was until we were approached by the Morrinsville RSA asking how they could help make a stay in our continuing care facility more enjoyable.”
Gina said it was Enrolled Nurse Liz Sharpe who came up with the idea of fitting out the single rooms with televisions.
“With some of our patients, a reassuring voice or noise in the background can make all the difference and from what we’ve been able to observe it certainly appears to be the case.”
Morrinsville RSA stalwarts Paul Hedra and Stan Darlington gave up two days of their time installing the televisions which were funded from the local community’s generosity.
“Earlier in the year the RSA had approached Rhoda Read staff about us wanting to get involved in a community-based project such as helping out their facility,” said Paul.
“Funding for the TVs came out of the RSA Poppy fund. Our District is pretty generous when it comes to supporting local veterans and when the local Heathcote’s store found out what we were up to they came to the party with a pretty good deal for us.”
Gina said the gift was quite timely considering a number of the RSA’s own ranks were often among the 32 bed facility’s patients.
“In the week following the installation we’d had three veterans as patients who were able to reap the benefits of their local RSA and community’s generosity.”
