What Do LTC Residents Really Want?

During a recent CBS Sunday Morning telecast, which aired on March 3, 2019, the story of a young girl visiting a nursing facility initially caused me some distress and made me pause in reflection. 

The report featured an 11-year old girl, Ruby, who went to volunteer at a long-term care facility where her mother worked as a nurse. While Ruby was working there and serving residents, she wanted to understand the residents better and wondered at what residents at the facility might desire that they might not express to staff. So she began a quest to interview as many of the facility’s residents as possible, asking them what their true wishes might be. According to the telecast, Ruby was surprised to find that many of the residents asked for cookies, cakes, pies, and Vienna sausages rather than houses, cars, or other expensive items.

Following her interviews with the residents, Ruby established a GoFundMe page to finance her purchase of these items.  The report on CBS showed Ruby bringing these items to the residents and being rewarded with hugs, kisses, and praise.

At first, I was infuriated by the segment. If these wishes were so simple to fulfill by Ruby, why were they not satisfied by the nursing home staff or, more specifically, the activities department? If Ruby had not visited this nursing home and taken the time to speak to residents, would these desires have gone unexpressed and unfulfilled? Does it really require an 11-year old girl to be able to ask residents about what they want and access these goods?

I watched the segment again after examining my initial reaction. Afterwards, I realized that it seemed that the majority of the residents were thrilled with the three wishes primarily because of their connection to Ruby. It mattered less what wishes were provided and mattered more that Ruby just took the time to sit beside them and ask them what they wanted. During the course of care in a facility, while we are telling residents what they need, we should remember the importance of simply asking an individual what they think and how they feel, as this is just as important as meeting their basic needs. 

What is our responsibility to our residents? Although it was clear that Ruby and the residents were pleased with this unprompted interaction, we should consider how we, as paid employees, can meet the needs of our residents on a routine basis by taking more time to ask them how they really feel and what they might want beyond the normal care needs. Can we meet our residents most basic need to feel heard and valued just by showing them that we care to stop and ask what they want?

Ilene Warner-Maron, PhD, RN-BC, CWCN, CALA, NHA, FCPP, has been practicing nursing for 33 years, specializing in the care of geriatric patients. Dr. Warner-Maron is the president of the Institute for Continuing Education and Research, providing educational programs for individuals seeking licensure in nursing home administration.