© Imelda Maurer, cdp September 22, 2015
ilmcdp@yahoo.com
ilmcdp@yahoo.com
The following are words of Pope Francis to the people of
Cuba, calling them (and all of us) to a revolution of mercy!
"Our
revolution comes about through tenderness, through the joy which always becomes
closeness and compassion, and leads us to get involved in and to serve the life
of others."
If this culture
of Mercy became the dominant culture in nursing homes and any other community,
licensed or not, where supportive services are offered to older adults, what a
revolution we would see!
Imagine –if mercy, tenderness and compassion
carried the day –
What
care planning meetings would look like!
What
dining services would become!
What
the daily ‘schedule’ would become!
What
the morale of staff would be!
What
leadership, growth and development would burst forth among the staff!
What
positive outcomes residents would experience physically, emotionally and
psychosocially.
Hmmm---
That last phrase, for those readers who work in licensed homes, will be recognized
as coming directly from Federal regulations:
Sec. 483.25 Quality of care.
“Each resident must receive and the facility must
provide the necessary care and services to attain or maintain the highest
practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being”
That same mandate is noted four more times under
the responsibilities of these disciplinary areas/departments:
Medically-related
Social Services
Resident
Assessment
Nursing
Services
Administration
The terms ‘accommodate’ and ‘accommodation’ are
also used about five times in the federal regulations, always in the context of
resident needs, preferences and choice.
I continue to find it awesome and profoundly true,
that there is a close parallel between Faith values (and Sisters’
Congregational documents, mission and values) and the spirit and letter of the “Minimum
Standards of Care”, the Federal Regulations. If any reader can cite an example
of when the regulations do not allow mercy, tenderness or compassion, please
share that information .
Imagine if we had a Revolution of Mercy in nursing
homes across our country!
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