Although the world was on hold for months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, life didn’t stop for many of our staff members & clients at Care on Call. Now that the country has entered Alert Level 2, we’d like to reflect on our time in lockdown and celebrate the wonderful work of our team. We’ve asked employees from different regions across New Zealand to share their stories – here’s what they had to say:

Alex, a new Care on Call staff member, took over all of our shifts assisting a client with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The lockdown period was hard for many of us, but especially tough for those living alone, including this client. Alex visited the client daily, walking with them, performing household tasks, keeping them active and providing positive energy. Alex proved instrumental in helping them through the isolation of Levels 3 & 4, as evidenced by the clients improving health during and after the lockdown period.

Kathryn, a member of our staff at Care on Call, assisted a client of ours by visiting them twice weekly during the lockdown period. As many of us experienced firsthand, queues at the supermarket were especially long during levels 3 & 4. As Kathryn’s visit time with this client was limited to 3 hours a week, she took the liberty of grocery shopping for them on her way to work. In addition to this, Kathryn assisted the client during an extended hospital visit and made sure to keep their family in the loop. Needless to say - the client’s family were grateful for her outstanding level of care!

Personal Protective Equipment (or PPE) was understandably a necessity for our staff throughout the pandemic. Anelie and other staff members were crucial in keeping an inventory of this PPE and distributing it to our caregivers.

Many of our staff sacrificed their family time to work in aged care facilities throughout the lockdown period. For these team members, working from home wasn’t an option. They were hands-on, running wellness checks and other services for seniors at facilities across New Zealand.

Many of our staff worked  throughout the lockdown period. For these team members, working from home wasn’t an option. They were hands-on, running wellness checks and other services for seniors and disabled people across New Zealand.

As we slowly return to regular life, the work continues for the team at Care on Call. Even so, we’d like to thank all of our staff for going above and beyond during the lockdown period - picking up countless extra shifts, working on the weekends, sacrificing their family time to care for those in isolation, and keeping up their positive attitudes. Ngā mihi nui.