H1N1 Doesn’t Stop the Program

Northbridge, MA November 16, 2009_As fears over the H1N1 pandemic continue to rise, residents of one Massachusetts senior living community have created an innovative way to continue their daily intergenerational connections, while minimizing the risk of catching or spreading the flu. The response from residents and children has been tremendous.This year, Beaumont at Northbridge is taking flu season very seriously and has temporarily halted face-to-face interaction between its residents and children from the SALMON Center for Early Education. Since H1N1 requires human interaction to transmit the virus from one person to another, Beaumont is benefiting from both modern technology and traditional communication tools to keep its successful intergenerational program alive and prospering.

Forty five seniors and 40 children (ages three months through 104) currently participate in this program that has become increasingly popular at Beaumont. Instead of looking forward to their weekly lunches, hanging out, or reading stories together, the following are two of the modified activities that have become a big hit:

• “Skyping” – Because modern virtual technologies like Skype offer a way for people to see one another without being exposed to them, “Skyping” allows Beaumont residents and children an alternative to stay connected and engaged with one another during flu season.
• Pen pals – Traditional letter writing has been reintroduced at Beaumont to help foster creative thinking. Children and adults alike are tapping into their artistic abilities by drawing pictures and writing letters to one another.

With this program, Beaumont residents continue to look forward to their interaction with the children and can hardly wait to Skype and receive the next piece of art from their younger pen pal. Once flu season is over, Beaumont will begin normal activities, while also maintaining the new practices.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 20th, 2010 at 10:47 am and is filed under Beaumont. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.