(Republished with permission from the Madonna Foundation E-news – May 2020 Newsletter)

An important way to cope with the restrictions placed on social gatherings is to stay connected to family and friends through a variety of creative means.

While Madonna has restricted visitors on both campuses for the safety of patients and staff since early April, family and friends have been able to stay connected with their loved ones thanks to donor support.

Two recent generous gifts from Friedman Law Offices and Sharon Graves Lind were quickly put to use to purchase iPads and other tablets that are now in service on both campuses connecting patients and residents with their loved ones. With more communication tablets available, family and friends can set up appointment times for assistance with such communication tools as Zoom or FaceTime.

“Having access to more tablets has been a real game changer to help patients keep in touch, update loved ones on their day-to-day activities and just have some time to socialize,” according to Suzanne Sughroue, associate vice president of development, Lincoln Campus.

Case managers and social workers also have coordinated times for families to join therapy sessions remotely during the day. Since early May, Madonna has hosted more than 550 HIPAA-compliant Zoom sessions for physical, occupational and speech therapies.

Residents in Madonna’s St. Jane de Chantal long term care services also benefitted from donor generosity as special funding was used to purchase tablets to allow more face-to-face communication with family and friends. The tablets also are used to download games and music for the residents.

“We are so grateful to our donors for thinking of our patients and residents during this unique time,” Suzanne added.