Luana in Action

I think that it's such a great way to start off the New Year when I come to work in the morning and a co-worker shares not one, but two great examples of Luana in action. Hale Makua Kahului's Restorative Nursing team consisteing of Carolyn Corpuz, Beth Poe, Imelda Casabay, Cecilia Albano, and Adel Della with the help of Mar Sol and Erllie Cabacungan threw two different parties over the last month at the request of residents who frequent the Restorative Care gym. The first party was held in honor of December birthday boys Joseph Thomas and Bruno Wong.The Restorative Nursing team along with Erllie prepared a home cooked meal for Joe, Bruno and some of their friends who also reside at Hale Makua.

As 2009 came to a close, several residents began talking about the foods that they'd love to eat for a New Year's celebration. Overhearing their conversation the Restorative Nursing team took it upon themselves to throw a dozen residents who frequent the Restorative Nursing gym a New Year's Day party with a feast of pancit, chicken papaya, stew, shrimp cocktail, garlic shrimp, lumpia Shanghai, and banana lumpia. The celebration was completed with beverages for a toast to bring in the New Year.

These events addressed several Eden Alternative Principles including:

• Principle 3: Loving companionship is the antidote to loneliness. Residents deserve easy access to human and animal companionship.
• Principle 5: A resident-centered community imbues daily life with variety and spontaneity by creating an environment in which unexpected and unpredictable interactions and happenings can take place. This is the antidote to boredom.
• Principle 8: A resident-centered community honors its residents by de-emphasizing top-down bureaucratic authority, seeking instead to place the maximum possible decision-making authority into the hands of residents or those closest to them.
  

Finding a Spontaneous Moment

Earlier this week I was helping with the layout and adding photos into a PowerPoint presentation to be used for basic staff education about what Luana is and the Ten Eden Principles. I was having a difficult time finding photos that helped illustrate Principles Four, Five and Six, which state:

• Principle 4: A Resident-centered community creates opportunity to give as well as receive care. This is the antidote to helplessness.
• Principle 5: A Resident-centered community imbues daily life with variety and spontaneity by creating an environment in which unexpected and unpredictable interactions and happenings can take place. This is the antidote to boredom.
• Principle 6: Meaningless activity corrodes the human spirit. The opportunity to do things that we find meaningful is essential to human health.

I found that as one of the primary picture takers for Hale Makua Health Services, I really haven’t taken any photos of spontaneous moments. The photos I take are mostly of planned activities and events. In order to capture more of these spontaneous moments in photos, I would need to be constantly patrolling the neighborhoods with a camera in hand, something my other job responsibilities don’t really allow.

However, today I witnessed one of these unexpected interactions where one resident had the opportunity to give care. It actually happened to me as I was carrying a box with 70+ canvas tote bags to a craft fair in our Aloha Café. A resident seeing me struggling under the weight of the box, offered to help me by carrying the box on his lap while I wheeled him to my destination. This resident didn’t need to help me, he could have just watched me pass by, but it truly felt wonderful that someone who uses a wheelchair took the time out of his day to make my life a little easier.