SKLD staffer puts the “art” in heartwarming care

It’s not uncommon for SKLD staff to bring their whole selves to their daily work in skilled nursing. They serve as caretakers, therapists, friends and even family to residents.

One special SKLD Zeeland staff member has even brought her talent for art and painting to her job. Gillian Moore works in the activities department at SKLD Zeeland. She has a masters degree in art from Kendall College and uses her creativity to bring joy to the residents.

Beyond her work in the activities department, Gillian sometimes paints portraits of residents as a gift to their families.

During the pandemic, Gillian’s been using her talent and skill to help families of residents connect with their loved ones and have keepsake. She says, “One of our residents was reaching the end of her life, and her daughter and I bonded. I thought of something special I could do for her, so I decided to make a portrait of her mother.”

“When I gave it to her, she was so touched. I’ve done this now for four of my residents so far, and the families really appreciate it. I always talk and connect to the resident while I am painting, and it’s a very special experience,” Gillian shares.

Creating this strong bond with the residents takes a special type of person. Gillian says, “It’s such a nice thing to get to know the residents and really look at them. I recently got to do a portrait of a resident of mine that I became very close with. She was always so silly and would shake her head at me and say, ‘Oh, Gillian.’ It’s beautiful to be a part of my residents’ journeys and make them smile.” 

Connecting with skilled nursing residents through art

It takes a special kind of person to absolutely love working with residents in the memory care unit. Gillian is able to use her artistic creativity to inspire even the most reticent residents to join activities. Gillian says, “I knew I always wanted to be involved with art professionally. In the activity department, I get to do all of the fun work I love in a meaningful way.” 

There is no limit to the imaginative activities that Gillian and her team come up with to fill the residents’ days with meaning. She says, “Some of my favorite activities are crafts with the residents, flower arranging and just anything to help them have a good time.”

She continues, “We brought so much joy to the residents when we gave them an ice cream truck experience. We took a cart, used a cardboard cutout of an ice cream truck and made sure to have the music playing, too. That always gives the residents a good giggle.”

A dash of imagination 

Gillian can appreciate the dynamic nature of working with residents in the memory care unit. She says, “I think it’s fun to do different activities every day. We try to help people out whenever we can to make them smile.”

SKLD Zeeland’s activities department is the embodiment of teamwork. Gillian shares, “We bounce ideas off of each other. If something doesn’t work we always figure something else out together.” 

It can take innovation to come up with new activities and Gillian takes pride in some that have gone over really well with the residents. She says, “Recently I did a painting class with the residents. In the past, I’ve taught on campus, and it was special to bring this experience to the residents.”

Walking in the hallways, Gillian found that getting the residents involved in decorating bulletin boards is meaningful for them. Gillian says, “We made fish for June because it was aquarium month, sailboats for July and added tulips for tulip season. The residents and staff come together and it’s rewarding for us all to see it finished.”

Providing meaningful activities for skilled nursing residents

Staying organized helps the department build a repertoire of activities that the residents love. Gillian says, “We have a list of activities to do every day and we switch gears to find ones that resonate with the residents.” 

Especially when the weather is nice, the staff like to encourage the residents to get outdoors. Gillian shares, “The memory unit loves to hang out outside to relax and blow bubbles. Sometimes I’ll decorate the ground with chalk art and the residents seem to appreciate it.”

“Together with the residents, we created a guessing game with chalk. I begin to draw something like a mountain scene and they have to continue guessing what it is as I draw. They really loved when I made a sunflower,” Gillian says. 

Gillian likes to find ways to connect to her residents through hobbies. Sometimes that means going above and beyond the call of duty. She says, “I always talk about my fluffy cat, Loki. I’ll tell them all the funny things my cat does each day and they love to hear about him. A resident that I’m close with loves space, so I watched a few space documentaries to discuss with him.”

She continues, “There was a resident who only spoke Russian, but I found a way to connect to her through flower arranging. We just sat there enjoying the activity together and she always says, ‘thank you,’ afterward.”

Gillian has found art to be a way to connect to residents at any stage of their journey, whether they are a resident at SKLD for short term skilled nursing rehab or they are reaching the end of life.

And as for her personal pursuit of art? Gillian finds plenty of time outside of work to focus on that as well.