As medical director at a New Hampshire nursing home, Carey Rodd ’67 is working hard to protect the most vulnerable.

Michael Matros

As of early May, about three-fourths of all COVID-19 deaths in New Hampshire had occurred in nursing homes or other “congregate” living centers. The Merrimack County Nursing Home, a 292-bed facility 20 minutes north of Concord in Boscawen, N.H., however, had seen only two cases, with one resident dying and the other hospitalized before returning. “It’s really a crapshoot that you don’t get this, because other facilities have been decimated by this virus,” says the nursing home’s medical director, Dr. Carey Rodd ’67. “We’re just holding our breath and hoping nothing happens.”

Fortunately, the nursing home’s administrative team had planned for the outbreak, with Rodd pointing to a “very wise” central supply chief, who learned from a shortage of PPE during an influenza outbreak a couple of years ago – and has stocked up ever since.

“We’ve been doing okay,” says Rodd, “but the whole state is running short on gowns. That’s our big crisis now.” Like similar facilities, Rodd’s nursing home has been forced to become entrepreneurial, including trying to secure a shipment of gowns through a friend who lives in China. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Rodd learned, has commandeered three shipments of supplies destined for his facility. “Our central supply guy says that, apparently, in certain airports,” Rodd explains, “FEMA’s just waiting, trying to take the stuff that’s due for other places.

Rodd also speaks about the emotional toll of isolation on the elderly residents in his care. No visitors have been allowed into the facility since N.H. Governor Chris Sununu issued a stay-at-home order on March 26. Many of the residents at Merrimack County were accustomed to weekly – sometimes daily – visits from loved ones who would bring in their favorite foods. Some have lost weight. Aggravating the alienation has been the closure of the nursing home’s dining rooms, forcing solo eating in individual rooms, and cancellation of group activities that help residents interact. Staff members have been using video conferencing tools such as Skype and Zoom to try and connect residents with their families. It’s not always a successful communication method, as the technology can feel impersonal and cause further confusion.

“At our facility, a few residents have become very agitated and behavioral without the visits. It has also been rough for the families not being able to see their loved ones, especially if they are demented and cannot communicate by phone,” says Rodd. “All staff are wearing masks and some of the residents hate this. Masks make it much harder to communicate, mainly because of voice muffling or because the hearing impaired residents can’t read your lips.”

Rodd and the staff will continue their vigilance, including testing, sanitizing, and wearing protective equipment in an effort to protect their vulnerable population.

“It’s a lot of work,” Rodd says. “All of us are getting tested. Every time we come into work we have to wear a mask and get five questions, get our temperature taken, and then they’re checking every single resident for temperature and vital signs every shift, including oxygen saturation. They’re just very vigilant.”