Buddy system pairs residents and staff
Consistent engagement and stimulation are necessary pillars to both a life well-lived.
They are also fundamental elements to our ongoing Residential Care for Me project.
Providence’s elder care team, which cares for 691 residents across our five residential care homes and one assisted living home, is highly adept at coming up with innovative ideas that are effective, affordable and, in many cases, able to be implemented quickly.
One such idea can be seen at Mount Saint Joseph Hospital, where a “buddy system” for residents who may lack family support or receive few visitors has been implemented. The care team recognized the vital role that companionship plays in the health and well-being of their residents and so to ensure that no resident is ever left out this program pairs residents with a staff member who then becomes a constant in that resident’s day, engaging with them to keep loneliness at bay.
The buddy system is funded by St. Paul’s Foundation and is just one more innovation that means so much to residents and families. The learnings from this project will continue to help inform our pursuit of residential care transformation and redevelopment, as we commit to moving from the traditional institutional model of residential care to a social model of care.
