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Children and Pets . . .
Bring the Brightest
Smiles to Beechwood
Residents
Nothing brings about smiles and happy
memories to our residents more than
children or pets.
Beechwood Continuing Care has always welcomed children
and pet visits into our communities. However, when we
transitioned into a person-centered care community
in 2007, we wanted to develop more
purposeful programs that would regularly
provide a more rich and enhanced experience
for our residents. According to Rose Kusmierczyk, recreation director,
“These two programs bring such joy and happiness to our residents. We look
forward to every visit!”
Pet Program
Beechwood Homes has an open pet program which includes live-in pets and
visits from both staff and family pets. Our program is based on the Eden
Alternative model and is an integral part of our “Welcome Home” initiative
that is all about the resident experience.
To start, Beechwood Homes created a pet committee whose members
included staff, family and residents. Their first charge was to create a
directive and procedures to support various pet interactions with residents
that provide an animal-resident bonding experience. All in-house pets
require a detailed care plan as required by the NYS DOH. Care planning
includes record of all immunizations, medications, annual vet visits,
responsible party for feeding, etc. If staff wish to bring in their pet, they need
the approval of their supervisor and are asked to work with Rose to integrate
them into weekly programs for the residents. We even review our pet
program in staff orientation to ensure that new employees are aware and
embrace our pet friendly environment. Family pets are only required to show
proof of immunizations and that they are “socially” appropriate to visit.
Presently, Beechwood has a live-in rescue cat, Abby, and two bird aviaries.
Our bird aviaries consist of a variety of finches and are cared for by staff
volunteers on a daily basis. ^H