By Peter Finney Jr.
Clarion Herald

The vaccines approved by the federal government to eradicate the spread of COVID-19 have been called  “game” changers. But, especially for seniors who live in apartments operated by the Archdiocese of New Orleans, those vaccines are more appropriately called “life” changers.

Gloria Marzloff, who has lived at Chateau de Notre Dame since last August, had not been able to see her family for nearly seven months because of visitation restrictions imposed by the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Louisiana Department of Health.

“It was awful, because I have a big family, and I’m very close to them,” Marzloff said last week.  

And then, in early March, everything changed as enough seniors on the priority list received their vaccinations, allowing visitation restrictions to be relaxed throughout Notre Dame Health System and Christopher Homes residences for seniors.

Oh, happy day

“Oh, I was happy, just like today – I’m happy,” Marzloff said, smiling broadly in the lobby during a visit with her son Steve.

Steve Marzloff said the family had been keeping in touch with Gloria through regular phone calls – “We got her a cell phone,” he said – but it was a challenge not to have close contact.

“It’s just been very difficult because she came in at a time when COVID was already in progress,” he said. “So, we really haven’t been able to see her set-up or anything.”

Deacon Jeff Tully, president and CEO of Notre Dame Health System, said 94% of 400 residents and about half of the agency’s 700 employees have been fully vaccinated. Deacon Tully said the high rate of vaccination among seniors is a result of providing them and their families with detailed information about the benefits of the vaccine.

“We’ve done medical town hall meetings, passed out information from the CDC and the Louisiana Department of Health – we’ve really inundated them with written material and talked and answered questions,” Deacon Tully said. “We’ve done everything we could. CVS (pharmacy) came out and did several sessions with us. They complimented us on our process, because it was extremely organized.”

Notre Dame Health System encompasses Chateau de Notre Dame apartments and nursing home in New Orleans; Notre Dame Home Care, Home Health and Hospice; Our Lady of Wisdom Health Care Center in Algiers; and Wynhoven Health Care Center in Marrero.

Because the vaccines were developed and approved under emergency conditions, an employer cannot mandate that all employees take the shot, but Deacon Tully is encouraging as many staff members as possible to take the vaccine. 

“We can mandate several things like the flu shot and TB testing, but because (the COVID-19 vaccine) was fast-forwarded under emergency procedures of the federal government, we can only encourage it,” he said.

In-person visitation resumed 
Now that virtually all of his residents have been vaccinated, they have been able to return to in-person visits with family members, Deacon Tully said.

“The best way to describe it is that this whole pandemic has been like Good Friday,” Deacon Tully said. “With the release of the vaccine, it all of sudden has been like a resurrection. It’s a beautiful thing. The first weekend after getting new guidance from the Louisiana Department of Health, Our Lady of Wisdom had 212 visitors. It was incredible.”

Deacon Uriel Durr, who works in pastoral care at Chateau de Notre Dame, said the return to in-person visits has had a dramatic effect on residents’ emotional outlook.

“One resident told me it was the first time she got to touch her daughter in over a year,” Deacon Durr said. “What’s really awesome is that now the residents are eating again with each other. We’ll take the second floor down one day and the fourth floor down another. Can you imagine eating in your room every day for a year? When they came down to eat, it was such a glorious day. Everyone was just so giddy and happy.”

Setting eyes on Momma
Andrew Cedor, administrator at Chateau de Notre Dame, said the stress level among families during the pandemic, as expected, has been high, but the facility has been sending out weekly communications to families to comfort them.

“The ability to come in and see with their own eyes the environment that their loved ones have been living in and the care that they’re receiving has been amazing for the residents, the patients and the families,” Cedor said.

The recommended length of a visit is one hour, greatly expanded from even a few weeks ago.

There have been additional benefits of the mask wearing and taking other precautions, Cedor said.

“We’ve had no flu cases at all this season – staff or residents,” he said.

Christopher Homes’ success
Deacon Dennis Adams, executive director of Christopher Homes, which operates 20 archdiocesan properties for approximately 2,600 residents, said the rollout of the vaccine was extremely smooth because of the support the agency received from area pharmacies, which visited each facility so residents did not have to go off site.

Overall, two-thirds of Christopher Homes residents have been fully vaccinated through the in-house pharmacy sessions, and some may have gone elsewhere to be vaccinated, Deacon Adams said.

Christopher Homes has updated its visitation policies to “increase opportunities for our residents to have visits with families,” Deacon Adams said.

“We’re still not opening up all of our common areas, although residents can visit with family members unfettered outside or with a limited number, three to four at a time, in their apartments. We still are pressing very hard for our residents to wear masks when they are outside of their apartments and maintain some level of social distancing. It’s given residents better opportunities to be with their families.”

Out of the 2,600 residents, there have been approximately 80 cases of COVID-19 reported, “which is very positive.” There have been a handful of deaths among residents attributed to the virus, Deacon Adams said.

“Overall, we’ve done well, and that’s a tribute to our staff and our managers at the sites who really handled this so very well,” he said. “Our director of operations, Patricia Fulkerson, has done yeoman’s work.”

Deacon Tully said the evidence of success are the many smiles he now sees while walking through the halls of Chateau de Notre Dame.

  “Joy is back, and it’s a beautiful thing,” he said.

pfinney@clarionherald.org