About 70% of staff members at a Connecticut nursing home and assisted living provider have opted to take the COVID-19 vaccine following intense employee engagement programs that started early on in the pandemic.
LiveWell’s vaccine success among workers started as an emphasis on keeping residents during the start of the public health crisis, according to Chief Operating Officer Maley Hunt, who detailed the provider’s success with Mother Jones.
The Plantsville, CT-based long-term care provider focuses on caring for individuals with dementia. Hunt said based on their residents, management knew social distancing and mask wearing would be tough for the population.
“They don’t understand social distancing,” she told the news organization. “They kind of sometimes go in other people’s rooms, or use different bathrooms. The idea of stopping the spread, once it got in the building, was basically designated as almost impossible.”
Hunt described how the facility essentially created a bubble for its workers and residents even before similar federal and state mandates were put in place, according to the report. Those policies included requiring employees to wear masks and prohibiting them from working multiple jobs, while in turn offering more hours and paid sick leave.
She said once the vaccine was available, “our staff were so excited. They see this as hope, and they see this as a return to normalcy.” The company also had individual conversations with workers about the vaccine and required people who were hesitant to attend a meeting with its geriatric doctor to answer any questions and concerns.
Overall, about 145 of its 207 workers signed up to receive the vaccine during the first clinic — with 25 more signing up for the second clinic that’s set for next week, according to the report. The company’s goal is to hit a 90% vaccination rate among staff.
Overall coronavirus vaccine acceptance among nursing home workers is believed to be between 45% and 50%.
