Honesty Thomas, CNA at Arcadia Care of Danville, poses for a photo with co-worker Dorothy Kelley.
Honesty Thomas
COMMUNITY 2019
8
BY CAROL ROEHM
[email protected]
Honesty Thomas always had a desire
to help out wherever and whenever
needed.
When Thomas embarked on her
journey at Danville Area Community
College in 2011 to become a Certified
Nursing Assistant (CNA), little
did she know how important her job
would become this year.
She is now the lead CNA at Arcadia
Care on North Bowman Avenue,
where she cares for dozens of
residents, some of whom have not
seen their loved ones in person since
March.
“I assist residents with feeding,
toileting, bathing, grooming and
personal hygiene,” she said. “I answer
call lights and pass the hall cart with
meal trays.
“I get them ready for therapy and
social activities, and I dress them,
shave them and clip their fingernails,”
she added.
Although Thomas has worked at
the same nursing home facility since
2008, it was called Danville Care back
then and she had a different job. A
new owner acquired the facility in
February and changed the name to
Arcadia Care.
“I started here as a housekeeper,”
she said. “There was a lot I wanted to
do here, but couldn’t do. I wanted to
help out more.”
SUSAN JOY MCKINNEY/OUR COMMUNITY
CNAs continue to assist area residents
That’s when she decided to enroll
in the CNA program at DACC.
In addition to providing daily care
to the residents, Thomas also manages
the schedules of her peers.
“Being the lead CNA, I’m the shift
coordinator and I make sure we have
enough staff for both buildings,”
she said, referring to the New Focus
Achievement Center, next door to
Arcadia Care.
“I assist with call-ins and finding
(shift) coverage,” she added.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic,
Thomas’ job already entailed quite a
bit of responsibly, but that has greatly
increased since March.
“The pandemic has affected our
job because we have to ensure the