Hello everyone,

I’m pleased to share with you the summer edition of Connections. 

This is a particularly special issue because it features some of the many cultural events and observances we celebrate during the summer. Our communities do a tremendous job all year round celebrating the incredible diversity that exists within the groups of people who live and work with us, but these activities are more important than ever as we continue our learning journey and work to become a more diverse, equitable and inclusive organization where everyone feels a sense of belonging. We are grateful to have our Trusted Partner, Ashanti Leadership and their CEO, Ann Divine, guiding our activities.

In early May, we hosted Great People Parties at every site to celebrate team members and officially launch our “Blue Book” which includes our Guiding Principles. I was honoured to join the team at Northumberland Hall in Amherst, N.S., for their party where the team and residents all had a great time. To date, 90 per cent of our team members have received their copy of the Blue Book which helps guide them in delivering on our principles of Compassion, Honesty, Professionalism and Safety each and every day. You will continue to hear much more about this foundational work in the coming weeks and months. 

There have also been lots of opportunities for us to recognize and reward the Great People who go above and beyond every day. Nursing Week, Long Term Care Proud Day in Nova Scotia, and Nursing Home Week in New Brunswick were all held over the past couple of months. We were also excited to celebrate two 20-year milestone anniversaries for our Arborstone and Maplestone Enhanced Care communities and in May, we were thrilled to welcome everyone back to an in-person annual Excellence Awards Gala where we had the pleasure of a very special performance by Bruce Guthro.  

All in all, it feels good to be together again and I feel a sense of relief and optimism for the first time in many months. We’ve shared a unique experience together, weathering this pandemic, and I think it’s made us appreciate each other more than ever. As we continue to enjoy this beautiful summer, I hope you find time to do the things that bring you joy and that it involves the people you care about.

Arborstone Enhanced Care

Arborstone Enhanced Care, previously known as Armview Estates, first opened its doors under its new name 20 years ago. Today, the community is home to 190 residents, which includes seniors and young adults with disabilities. 

Arborstone’s anniversary celebration was held on June 24 and although the weather outside was wet and dreary, the mood inside was bright and sunny. Party-goers gathered in the newly renovated Great Room and café to recognize 20 years and also celebrate team members with years of service pins.

“I started working here when I was 22, I met my husband who worked here for 40 years, had children and raised them here; my whole life has kind of been centered around Arborstone.”

Donna Shadbolt, Recreation Programmer 

“Mealtimes are always fun because the residents are like brothers and sisters. They’re always laughing with each other, and are a close-knit group – I always enjoy being around them.”

Rose Lynn Demeter, Licensed Practical Nurse

“We take pride in our work. We take pride in our wellbeing; the relationships and the service we provide to the residents – they are well cared for.”

Shirley Dewolfe, Dietary Aide

Parkland Saint John

One of the first people you meet when you walk into Carleton Hall, on the Parkland Saint John campus, is Concierge Heather Long-Smith. Her smiling bright blue eyes welcome residents, family members, and guests every day. Connecting with people is an essential part of her role and for Heather, it’s a personal highlight.

“I’ve grown really close to some of the residents, and I would say that’s the best part of my job,” she says. “The relationships that you gain from interacting with the residents every day is something I really treasure.”

Born and raised in Saint John, N.B., Heather has spent her life in the community. Before joining the Parkland team, she earned a degree in Secretarial Studies and Administration from the University of New Brunswick Saint John (UNBSJ) campus. Throughout her career she spent some time working with the city’s former Mayor Elsie Wayne at her alma matter, UNBSJ, and now at Parkland, where she has been since February 2016.

Every day, when she comes to Parkland, Heather knows she’s surrounded by a positive team.

“It’s fulfilling and a great place to work,” she says. “Everyone takes pride in what they are doing, and they do a great job to support the residents.”

We want to thank Heather for the compassion, honesty and professionalism she demonstrates every day.

Yellow Belt Training

Recently, 27 of our Great People from across New Brunswick gathered at Faubourg du Mascaret’s Collaborative Learning Centre of Aging, to participate in our first Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt class at Shannex. Made up of team members from various areas, the group focused on our long term care and special care homes.

This enthusiastic team spent two days learning together about quality improvement, Lean Six Sigma, change and project management and tackled their project for Yellow Belt certification. In the fall, the group will come back together to share what they’ve learned, celebrate accomplishments and complete their certification.

Congratulations to our newest class of Quality Improvement champions as they begin this journey. Well done!

Pride Month

To honour the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, our residents and team members came together to show their Pride by raising flags, held information sessions and attending their local pride parades.  

Filipino Heritage Month

The Shannex family is grateful to all the Filipino residents and team members who live and work in our communities. Throughout June, we marked Filipino Heritage Month with flag raising ceremonies and cultural celebrations.

Multiculturism Day

Residents and team members had the opportunity to learn about the many cultures living and working in our communities by taking part in various multicultural events. 

Meet Ann Divine

Throughout our inclusivity journey, we have been working closely with our Trusted Partner, Ashanti Leadership and their CEO and Founder, Ann Divine. She has an extensive history of working in change management, leadership development and strategic thinking. Ann says an inclusive workspace is where everyone feels a deep sense of belonging and they don’t have to hide who they are on the job.

“Organizations have to take time to educate themselves about what inclusivity is, what it means, and how can we demonstrate that on a daily basis. It’s easy to talk about, but hard to do. It means you have to put things in place to change the dynamics of the organization.”

Health, Wellness and Safety

Safety is a Guiding Principle foundational to our every day work. We strive for all our communities to have a positive health, wellness and safety culture. 

In June and July, safety leaders at each of our Shannex communities came together at one of 17 Safety Culture Summits to further learn and develop safety skills.

Our summit participants, made up of people leaders and JOH&SC members committed to the following:  

• Strengthening work relationships 
• Using the Safety Profile Scorecard (SPS) to benefit their community 
• Contributing to help strengthen safety culture in the workplace 

In the coming months we will be checking in to learn about what’s happening at every location to transform our safety culture. Keep watching this space in future issues of Connections to be inspired.

Insights Lab

A year ago, we established the Shannex Insights Lab which is an internal research and analysis hub dedicated to analyzing resident data from various sources with the goal of generating insights that help identify opportunities to improve resident care and outcomes.

On May 11, Insights Lab Manager Vicki Muscat attended the 2022 Canadian Frailty Network Conference in Fredericton, N.B. to present the lab’s findings and talk about the great work underway.

“Having access to data is an innovative way to support team members in their work,” says Vicki. “It helps them relay important information to families which can bring them peace of mind about their loved ones.”

The conference brought together healthy aging industry partners, including the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation to network, brainstorm emerging ideas and address questions or challenges they might be facing.

After being nominated for a Caught You Being Great Award, Andrew Singh, team member at Parkland on the Glen, was applauded for his dedication to service excellence and compassionate care.

Coreen is a resident at the lifestyle residence community in Mississauga and frequently likes to call her two sons who both live in the United States. Andrew noticed that Coreen was having trouble seeing the numbers on her current phone and decided to do something to help. After doing some research, Andrew purchased a phone that could have photos associated with each number on the dial. He connected with Coreen’s family and asked them to send photos, which he then shrunk to size, cut out and added them to the phone so she could simply touch the button of the person she wanted to contact. After he convinced Coreen to make the switch to her new phone, Andrew rearranged her furniture to ensure a safe and efficient location for the phone. 

Well done, Andrew. Thank you for your thoughtful act of compassion. 

Harbourstone Enhanced Care

Ernie Buist is a World War II veteran who lost a leg one month after storming the beaches of Normandy. Despite being told by doctors that his life expectancy would be shorter than normal, Ernie celebrated his 104th birthday this past May.

Recently, a local newspaper asked Ernie, a gifted storyteller, to share stories of the past century of his life. After returning home from war, Ernie worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs before taking a job at the steel plant in his hometown of Sydney, Cape Breton where he still resides today at Harbourstone Enhanced Care.  

Following the interview with The Cape Breton Post, Ernie was invited to virtually meet with The Minister of Veterans Affairs and MP for Sydney-Victoria, Jamie Battiste, and The Honourable Lawrence MacAulay on June 6, also known as D-Day to thank him for his service.

Thank you for your service and sharing your wonderful stories, Ernie!

Kiknu

We are proud to be working alongside Eskasoni First Nation, as the operating partner in the development of Kiknu, the first long term care home on a First Nation community in N.S. In July, we attended the 30th annual Eskasoni Powwow as sponsor of the event. We were pleased to host a booth and share information about the new home and invite community members to join our Advisory Committee.  

Read more about Kiknu on our website, shannex.com/kiknu.

Faubourg du Mascaret

During a small private gathering in April, a group of students from the New Brunswick Medical Training Centre at the Université de Moncton presented residents at Faubourg du Mascaret with a life journal.

Based on Mon journal de grand-mère: Un album-souvenir pour mes petits-enfants and part of the Learning through Community Service course, this project enabled students to develop healthy attitudes towards seniors, a sense of social responsibility and create links between students and residents. 

Students benefitted from meetings, calls and exchanges with residents and students to collect stories.

Many thanks to the students for their commitment to the project. The residents thoroughly enjoyed this experience.