ASQ Homecare Launches the “Snack Shack” to Say Thank You to Our Local Healthcare Workers
Our nation’s healthcare workers are on the front lines in the fight against Covid, so we’ve decided to say, “Thank You!” as sweetly as we can: with snacks, music, and handouts!
“Every day they walk into work, they face a long and hard battle to keep their patients and coworkers safe, and that's a lot of pressure,” said Assured Quality Homecare COO Caleb Roseme.
Between social distancing, lockdowns, and mask-wearing, if there’s one thing Covid has taught us, is that we all need each other. Right now, we’re all feeling a little isolated from the people around us, even those we work with every day. Isolation from friends and coworkers is making everything in life so much harder. We wanted to come up with a reason to bring people together in a relaxed atmosphere, even if it’s only for a few minutes.
We created the Snack Shack to be a little mobile community to visit senior care facilities around the state, say thank you, and give them a few moments to enjoy a brownie or some cookies together.
We may not hug all their team members, but we can treat them to the next best thing — snacks, music, and handouts!
“When we run the Snack Shack,” said Caleb, “we invite everyone in the building to come out, grab as many snacks as they want, dance to some live music, take a few pictures, relax, and feel appreciated.”
In August, ASQ partnered with Elmbrook Village senior living facility and Kindred At Home nursing and rehabilitative therapy providers to set up the Snack Shack for the staff Norwichtown Rehabilitation and Care Center on West Town St., in Norwich. Peter A. Nystrom, the mayor of Norwich, attended the event and the event was a feature in the local paper by Norwich Bulletin.
The team at Norwichtown Rehab has not lost a single patient to Covid-19 — a truly remarkable accomplishment we are all proud of. Seniors have the highest risk factors and, nationally, they have suffered the most.
Norwich Rehabilitation and Care Center is a 120-bed skilled nursing community, and their highly trained staff has worked tirelessly to keep all of their residents safe.
Assured Quality Homecare staff members JeanClaudel St. Simon, Samanta Roseme, and Caleb Roseme, along with Michelle Drake, Executive Director of Elmbrook Village at Bozrah, and Sheila Thetreault, Clinical Home Health Specialist at Kindred at Home Old Saybrook, set up the Snack Shack at Norwichtown Rehab and got a chance to say thank you to staff members in person.
In October, we set up the Snack Shack at Mystic Healthcare Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, a family-owned and operated senior living facility located on High Street in Mystic. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid has awarded Mystic Nursing and Rehab Center five stars for their resident care quality.
"A HUGE Thank You to Caleb with Assured Quality and Sheila with Kindred Home Care for this amazing SNACK SHACK for our hard-working staff! A much-needed staff appreciation!"
Healthcare workers across Connecticut are making tremendous sacrifices to keep all of our loved ones safe and healthy. Caregivers in all of our senior care facilities have faced some of the toughest battles keeping our high-risk elderly parents and grandparents safe. As a result, many of our caregivers work daily under tremendous stress. Early national data is showing an increased rate of stress, depression, and burnout among healthcare workers.
Now, more than ever, we have to go out of our way to take care of those who take care of our loved ones and us. “Our goal,” according to Caleb, “is to create an environment to help relieve the stress they face and get a few smiles. From the feedback we are getting, I'm pretty sure it's working!"
As we move into the holiday season, Assured Quality Homecare is looking forward to bringing the Shack Snack to other senior care facilities across the state.
Our Halloween-themed Snack Shack will be in the New London County area this week. Stay tuned to our ASQ Facebook Page for exact locations. Make sure to follow us for all of our upcoming Snack Shack events!
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About Caleb Roseme
Caleb Roseme is the Homecare Executive Director at Assured Quality Homecare. Caleb oversees the home care agency's operations, ensuring that all systems are in place and that everything flows smoothly. Caleb graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from the University Of Connecticut in 2007 and has a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification from his eight years of working as quality assurance and process engineer at General Dynamics Electric Boat. Caleb is married and, together with his wife, is raising three beautiful children. You can find Caleb volunteering at his church or community in his free time, reading a personal development book, keeping up with the Boston Celtics, or spending time with his Crossfit community.