By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Wood County senior centers have added a new item to their home delivered menus – rapid COVID tests.
Wood County Committee on Aging Executive Director Denise Niese reported to the WCCOA Board Wednesday that 102 test kits have been delivered so far to seniors who get regular home delivered meals.
A total of 550 kits were provided by the Wood County Health Department specifically for seniors who don’t drive or have ambulatory issues.
“They are targeted to people who are homebound – to make sure this population was served,” Niese said.
Meal recipients are given red cards to place in their windows, requesting the rapid test kits if they have concerns that they may have COVID.
Niese predicted the demand for the home tests may spike after this weekend’s Super Bowl, since people will be gathering for the football game.
In other business, Niese reported to the board about last week’s “snow days,” when the senior centers in the county were closed.
“It wasn’t necessarily a day off” for some staff members, she said.
Site managers, home-delivered meal drivers and kitchen staff took home route sheets and client lists so they could check on seniors who are accustomed to getting daily meals delivered.
The seniors had been given a few shelf-stable meals in the fall, in preparation for snow days. For those who had already eaten those, the staff offered to send more.
On both Thursday and Friday, when the senior centers were closed, staff made phone calls to 550 people before 10 a.m.
“To make sure they had everything they needed, and they were OK for the day,” Niese said.
The most common concern expressed by the seniors was the impact the snowstorm would have on the meal menus, she said. The weather meant no liver and onions on Monday.
“Everybody heard about that,” Niese said of the popular menu item.
Also at the meeting, WCCOA’s Jim Stainbrook shared another lesson learned about the new building at 140 S. Grove St., Bowling Green. Stainbrook said he got a call from the Bowling Green Police Division on Tuesday evening about people in the building who were unable to get out.
It was discovered the knitting group who uses the facility, inadvertently closed the door connecting the room it uses to the rest of the senior center. The exterior doors to the respite day care area are for emergency use only and are equipped with alarms.
“Another learning experience,” Stainbrook said.
