No longer transparent: The Ella Center Association, which provides mental health assistance in coping with crises and loss, and Matav, which manages 25 day centers for the elderly throughout the country and employs tens of thousands of caregivers and caregivers, embarked on a joint initiative of holding unique resilience workshops for staff at the day centers and for nursing caregivers at home.
Caring for an elderly nursing home (archive), photo: Moshe Shai
The need to establish the program stemmed from the understanding that caregivers, who are coping with the loss and illness of their patients, themselves need support and reinforcement. To date, some 40 workshops consisting of three sessions have been held in the day centers, and in nursing branches throughout the country, some 50 workshops are currently being held for Israeli caregivers and caregivers who work abroad, consisting of one session that constitutes a support group.
The workshops provide participants with tools for coping with situations of loss and bereavement and for separating work from home and family, all with the aim of providing the teams with emotional well-being and the strength to continue their important work.
Moshe Ben Simhon
Hagit Kaminetsky-Nave, Human Resources Manager at Matav: "The workshops are first and foremost a meeting place for caregivers to get to know each other, receive support and strengthen the connection between them, but no less importantly, the workshops give the caregivers the feeling that the organization sees them and gives them tools for daily coping."
Rona Ackerman, social worker and psychotherapist, director of resilience and emergency at the Ella Center: "This is a population that receives almost no place or recognition in the public consciousness. The caregivers work with extraordinary dedication and are there for the elderly in places where family members are usually not present, supporting them for hours, and they need additional tools to cope with complex and challenging situations - both physically and mentally."
The nursing home, photo: Michelle Dot Com
Tzipora, a resident of Givat Shmuel and a therapist, talks about the connection created between the caregivers during the workshop: "We were able to share, open our hearts and learn from other people's situations. We learned what to pay attention to, understand patients and deal with different challenges and situations."
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