SUMMIT COUNTY — Sam McCoy said the pandemic has been difficult on families and residents in long-term care facilities because many of them have not been able to see their loved ones.

What You Need To Know

  • Two years ago, a nursing home in Summit County was ranked one of the top five worst in the United States

  • The nursing home task force has a goal to improve the overall conditions of nursing homes throughout the county

  • The nursing home task force is comprised of dozens of members including educators, advocates and families

 

“We have families and we have residents who haven’t seen people they love in nine months," said McCoy, the senior vice president for elder rights at Direction Home, one of the members of the Summit County Nursing Home Task Force.

But McCoy said he's hopeful that with the vaccine becoming more readily available more people will be able to visit loved ones in nursing homes.

McCoy, who has spent the last three decades advocating for residents in long-term care facilities around the Akron and Canton areas, said residents living in long-term care facilities are isolated now more than ever because of the pandemic.  

"Concerns that families have are real, and we as advocates work with families and facilities to see what we can do to advocate for safe visitation,” McCoy said. “We know the isolation has detrimental impacts among health, it’s real, it’s been documented it’s known.” 

Direction Home has spent the last several months working to address issues of isolation.

One solution they have come up with is to provide companion pets, "a robotic responsive cat or dog that responds to being petted to being caressed, to being cuddled and that sort of thing and the residents have really responded to that," McCoy said.

But he said nothing beats human interaction, which is why he and his team have been advocating for compassionate care visits.

"It would allow family members or others to make a visit into the nursing home, not across the window, or through the door, but within the facilities to have an opportunity to spend some time with someone they love,” he said.

McCoy said he's hopeful more people will get the vaccine.

But he said they have reached a roadblock when it comes to caregivers taking the vaccine.

He said only around 50% of caregivers across the state have accepted the vaccine,

“Taking the vaccine is in the best interest of caregivers, the general public and our residents in long-term care facilities and there has been a resistance,” McCoy said.

Meanwhile, McCoy said the acceptance rate for the vaccine among long-term care residents is more than 80%.