Q1: How have things been going since the last time you joined us (almost a year ago)?

A: When we spoke last year, we were headed towards destruction in nursing homes, at the time they were the epicenter for COVID-19 cases and deaths. Early on forty percent of the deaths were in nursing homes, and it was difficult to see the silver lining. We had 250 cases in AG Rhodes, 26 resident deaths, 181 staff cases and one staff death. When the vaccines were introduced almost a year ago, we were the first ones to jump on and had our staff and residents vaccinated. Within two months our cases virtually dried up compared to the wider community. It points to two things, one, the resilience of us as a sector and the effectiveness of the vaccines. If I have to say anything today, it is to go get vaccinated, and the booster!

Q2: What motivated you to write “Brush Fire: COVID-19 and Our Nursing Homes”?

A: This book has been one of the more therapeutic things I have ever done in my life. I was at a very low point professionally and personally due to COVID. It just kept intensifying, my team and I were trying everything we knew to be a support to those in the homes, but in some ways, I still felt helpless that I ran out of ways to help my team and help my staff. Regulations and expectations kept changing. I was at a point where I couldn’t sleep. Then it dawned on me one day after several conversations at a town hall meeting answering questions for staff that I had no answer. I was trying to keep them motivated, but I had no answer, and, in that light, I started writing. I wanted my staff to know that I understood what they were going through. Although I could not fully help them like I would want to. So, I channeled those frustrations into writing and chronicling the highs and lows of AG Rhodes experiences in COVID.

I was able to show my team that I understood and I empathize with them and that what nursing home staff went through should never be forgotten. The constant vilification by the media was discouraging. A big part of this book is devoted to how we build back better, how do we change, and the improvements that can be made. This is not a perfect sector or industry; we have a long way to go, and the vilification is not what’s needed. Coming together as a group and figuring out the change is what’s needed.

Q3: How was your book received by staff? Did it achieve what you anticipated?

A: It has been received well. I am now disseminating it to more of our direct care staff. Hopefully in better days we will look back and read about what happened to us during COVID.

Q4: Have you heard from anybody who’s looked at the book outside of long-term care and wanted to learn?

A: Yes, I have been transparent from a nursing home point of view. We are an imperfect Industry like many others. We have made mistakes in our industry. The biggest one of them is not inviting the public into our homes as often and that’s a lesson for us. We need to allow the public to see that we are business units just like other struggling sectors. The difference with us is that we cannot close our doors. We must continue business as usual even in these difficult times.

Q5: Recognizing the struggles of front-line staff, has that helped in terms of retention?

A: AG Rhodes has always had a strong culture to let staff know how important they are and that means paying them a proper living wage, showing true caring for not just them but for their families and that boils down to our policies. Our retention is better than many, but we are still struggling with high turnover rates due to COVID. Many people are deciding to leave the industry.

We had a service and retirement ceremony a few weeks ago where I retired three of our staff. One had been with us for 50 years, one for 48 years and one for 45 years. COVID expedited their decision to retire, and I don’t blame them in any way form or fashion, but that’s the reality of what has happened to our industry. The only way to come back from that is a strong culture of fair, equity, and how we care for our employees. The key to running a good nursing home is to treat the staff right.

Q6: Can you talk to us about the Leaders of Color Network that you’re working with LeadingAge on and what the group hope to accomplish?

A: The group is about taking care of staff. At AG Rhodes, our leadership is majority Caucasian and 90% of our direct care staff are people of color. The Leadership of Color Network recognizes this as a serious problem where we’ve created two classes. As a one of the few black leaders of a long-term care organization, this Network has given me the opportunity to speak out and to encourage more people of color to move into leadership positions.