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At Troy Health and Rehabilitation Center, the residents are adjusting to the changes that have been made to keep them safe during the coronavirus crisis, said Dorothy Thompson TH&R activities director.

“We have made the necessary changes to make sure our residents are not exposed to the coronavirus and so that their families feel secure about their health,” Thompson said. “Because of the COVID-19, our residents can’t go into the dining room area so their entertainment has to be restricted to up and down the hall. We call in Entertainment on the Hall.”

Thompson said the residents play traveling Bingo which is a variation of table Bingo.

“The residents sit inside their rooms in their doorways to play Bingo,” Thompson said. “The prizes travel down the hallway to be delivered.”

On another day, the call comes down the hallway, “Fresh popcorn”! Get your fresh, hot popcorn!”

“We have a popcorn popper so we have movie theater popcorn,” Thompson said. “Our residents really like popcorn. And, hearing the ‘Fresh popcorn!’ vendor reminds them of when popcorn was sold that way at baseball games.”

The residents also enjoy playing balloon hockey.

“They hit balloons with a paddle as they float down the hall and really have fun doing that,” Thompson said. “Even though our residents have a lot of fun playing the hall games, they really miss going to the dining room where they socialize and drink coffee. Now, they are having their meals in their rooms so they miss that interaction.”

Even with all the changes, the residents at Troy Health and Rehab are adjusting.

“We keep them busy with TV and magazines and conversation,” Thompson said. “And, they can have window visits with their families between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. At that time, they can talk with their families on their personal phones or we have cordless phones they can talk on.”
Thompson said family members of the residents make appointments for window visits and both family members and residents enjoy their time together.

“We are adjusting to the things we have to do to keep our residents safe from the coronavirus but we look forward to the time when we can all be back together again,” Thompson said.