We have a massive “thank you” to make. Once again Kerikeri and the Mid North are stepping up to help fund a vital part of our work. We are a non-profit charitable company; the work we do in looking after the elderly in our community is made possible, in large part, by donations and the occasional generous bequest.
This time you’re helping us make life a hundred times* more comfortable for some of the most vulnerable residents of our 68-bed care facility.
For those of us fortunate enough to be up and about all day, the idea of spending most of our time in bed can seem attractive. But the novelty soon wears off – if you don’t believe me just ask any of our care facility residents.
One of the great downsides of bed-based care is the ever-present risk of bed-sores. These are pressure injuries, painful raw sores caused by reduced blood flow in the skin. They can be deep, painful and prone to infection.
Of course, this means that it can be difficult for people to rest comfortably. And, because nurses and healthcare assistants must ensure that our care facility residents are moved frequently, it can often disrupt their sleep.
We aim to reduce the risk of pressure injuries by replacing mattresses in our care facility with special, state-of-the-art ‘air technology’ mattresses. This will ensure increased comfort and improved rest because they are less noisy than older comfort mattresses and eliminate the need for care staff to ‘turn’ residents while they sleep.
These innovative mattresses help prevent bed sores by continually monitoring movement. A pump inflates and deflates sections of the mattress to stop pressure building in specific areas.
But, as you’d expect, this technology doesn’t come cheap. Each mattress, together with the pump that makes the magic happen, costs around $5,000 – enough to cause a different sort of pressure sore on our operating budget.
To get over this funding hurdle we launched our ‘Gift of Comfort’ fund-raising campaign on Facebook back in November (kerikerivillage.co.nz/gift-of-comfort). And, boy, has our community responded! So far you have donated $25,500 which enabled us to buy five mattresses and pumps.
Of course we’d like to buy more but, in the meantime, our sincere thanks go out to those individuals and businesses who have stepped up to the challenge. Particular mention must go to Alibaba's Flying Carpets, Gallagher Insurance New Zealand, Kitchens by Wood Design, Laser Electrical Northland, and Rotary Club of Kerikeri. Their support has been epic.
We’ll keep you posted as we move even closer to our target. In the meantime, enjoy the summer that seems to have arrived at last. Kia kaha.
*A figure of speech. We really cannot quantify how much more comfortable our residents are. We just know it’s “a lot”!
