KAUKAUNA, Wis. (NBC 26) -- St. Paul Elder Services has been on lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak for roughly two months. It has been 18 days since their last positive COVID-19 test, coming from two staff members that contracted the virus community-spread.
"We have not had any additional cases, so what we're doing is working," Sondra Norder, President and CEO of St. Paul Elder Services said. "We are a success story at this point."
The nursing home has implemented universal masking across campuses, vital screening staff ahead of every shift, and prohibited all visitation. To provide a visual for families missing their elderly relatives, St. Paul put together a documentary chronicling life inside their facilities at this historic moment.
Toward the end of March, Sondra mentioned that she'd like me to start documenting, just for historical purposes," Sister Cecilia Joy Kugel, communications specialist for St. Paul and Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity said. "What was going on, so taking PPE on and off, cleaning and that sort of thing. And from there, it really just blossomed."
The result is a nearly twenty-minutes-long documentary available on their Facebook and Youtube pages.
"While I was working on it, I just felt like there was something beyond me being a part of this," Sister Cecilia Joy Kugel said. "It was just an incredible feeling to just be editing and in that moment, and putting together history and realizing that this is a powerful story that needs to be shared and I'm glad that it can be shared."
