Page 60 - LIN March-2023 50-84-sent

Some
Some
COVID
C O VID
lessons
lessons
are

re
a
worth
worth

keeping
keeping

by Jeff Lytle

e remember plenty of bad experiences Jackie Faffer, president and CEO of the Baker Senior Center
with the pandemic, but there are Naples, said she looks forward to using online or virtual Zoom
Wsome rays of light – some practices we tools, which were godsends during the pandemic, to stay in touch
should keep doing now. with seniors who leave the local area for the summer.
For example, I believe avoiding indoor The new and improved senior center in North Naples, she notes,
crowds of strangers still makes sense. has plenty of that technology built in.
It makes sense to cover your nose or mouth Still, Faffer adds, she wants to be careful to balance the Zooming
when sneezing or coughing, or stay home. The with the center’s traditional up close and personal, caring attention
pandemic taught us how hyper-wary others can to combat members’ feelings of isolation.
be of a hint of illness. A hallmark of that is the weekly Wednesday lunch, which has
We should continue new outdoor exercise habits. Indoor doubled to 300, even while respecting social distancing. “It’s a big
workouts of a different kind, team-building jigsaw puzzles, make room,” Faffer observes.
social sense too. Other pandemic holdovers will include providing further
That’s just me. vaccinations and boosters as needed and safeguarding cleanliness
Survey some local civic leaders and really good ideas come out. with a state-of-the-art air purification system and room-sanitizing
Michael Dalby, president and CEO of the Greater Naples robot.
Chamber, thinks big. “I’d like to see the level of regionally localized Ilia Echevarria, NCH chief nursing officer and executive
communication and local awareness continue.” director of the NCH COVID Response Team, reports NCH
With shortages of child care and housing, for example, Dalby follows CDC guidelines on preventive measures such as vaccines,
says it was “imperative to communicate what’s going on, what’s handwashing, masks and physical distancing, as well as their
working and what’s not. recommended strategies of what to do if you suspect you may have
“We aren’t a bunch of unassociated island communities.” COVID.
Leslie Lascheid, CEO of the Neighborhood Health Clinic,, “Other than that, there has not been one magic bullet that
wants to extend lessons learned. “If it was the importance of rises above the rest in offering protection --except for the masks,
washing one’s hands or how germs spread, we became more aware which everyone loves to hate,” Echevarria says, though adding:
as a community on all aspects of protecting oneself,” she says. “We “It was strict adherence to our masking policy at our facilities that
understood the importance of personal protective equipment like prevented any of our employees – zero -- from catching COVID
gowns, masks, and gloves … to protect both the patient and the from our patients (or vice versa). That’s a distinction not too many
physician, nurse or other health care individual.” other hospitals around the country can make.”
“Today, the clinic has been fortunate to have a higher number Rick LoCastro, Collier County commissioner and former
of patients requesting the flu vaccine,” she relates. “We have more hospital administrator, offers a fundamental view. “Staying in good
educational opportunities with our patients, better arming them health, connected with your personal physician, and monitoring
with the tools to manage their chronic conditions and have a more your personal symptoms is all I recommend,” says LoCastro. “Those
complete life.” who feel they are high risk can always proceed with caution …”
Mike Reagen, a past chamber president/CEO, points to science. Mike Lyster, president of the Collier Citizens Council, sees
“Amidst the most virulent pandemic in 102 years, I was shocked by good and bad. “The very best thing the county did was administer
the numbers of misled folks who followed those trashing science the vaccine program,” he says. “The next best thing, by the school
to embrace polarizing, divisive acts,” he says. “The result: sadly, system, was to get the students back to learning as rapidly as
thousands of unnecessary deaths.” possible, although remotely, and then offering several options for
Even Paul Beirnes, Collier County’s director of tourism, sees learning when the Fall 2020 session began.”
links between then and now, citing the importance of “being Lyster adds: “I believe that the medical community did its job
nimble while closely monitoring market conditions and research but the decision-makers placed entirely too much weight on those
with the proactive readiness to make rapid changes as necessary.” recommendations at the expense of our students, mental health
“These operational lessons will remain paramount for any and in some cases physical well-being (senior citizen shut-ins
business going forward,” he says, “as market conditions and especially). There should have been broader assessments of impacts
operational obstructions seem to emerge at warp speed.” and more individual freedom allowed.”
60 Life in Naples | March 2023