CAREGIVER IS INSPIRED TO SERVE


W


ilamenia Rosa was recently selected as Caregiver of the Year 2020 by LeadingAge PA, an organization whose membership


includes over 320 non-profit providers of senior living and services in Pennsylvania. She was selected from a group of exceptional employees across the state, who had been nominated by their organizations.


Wilamenia, known by most as “Wila,” has worked at Landis Homes in various roles for over twenty years, first as a Geri-aide in Healthcare, then as an assistant working with persons experiencing memory loss in what is now Landis Adult Day Services, and currently as a certified nursing assistant and medical technician in Personal Care. Another role she fills is household facilitator, where she gives additional leadership to her team. Her supervisor, Director of Personal Care Susan Paul, wrote in the nomination letter:


Wila’s peers, team leaders and supervisors look to her for ideas and suggestions for meeting resident needs and improving care. She spends time with residents learning as much as possible about their interests, desires and wishes. She will often come to weekly meetings with ideas and suggestions…..She suggests other resources such as pastoral or volunteer services to help surround the resident with more support. She is respected by her peers and is referred to by others as the “go to” person, always serving with a positive attitude.


“I enjoy the residents and the everyday interactions I have with them and their families,” Wila said. “I like to make a difference in residents’ lives. Te residents in personal care have given up so much of their former lives. My goal is to make them feel at home and to give them the opportunities to participate.”


When asked how she chose to work with older adults at Landis Homes, the humble and spirited woman said, “It was not planned. I was born in the mainland U.S. but grew up in Puerto Rico, living with my paternal side of the family.”


She went on to explain how in 1996, she moved back to mainland U.S. to care for her mother who was at the end of her life with cancer. “I took care of her for two and a half months,” said Wila. “After she died, I began to regularly visit my grandfather who lived at Landis Homes.”


Wila said her grandfather was in an apartment and his second wife lived in Healthcare. “Tat was the first time I saw the nursing staff and the good care going on there,” she remembered. “I thought to myself, this could be a good job for me.”


Wila applied and was hired right away as a Geri-aide in Healthcare. Over the years, she continued her studies to achieve the position she holds today. Always a student, she is currently in school part-time to become a registered nurse. “I learn so much from the residents each day,” said Wila. “I want to make sure all their needs are met. Also, working with people with dementia has become one of my passions. I am challenged to come up with new interventions each day, because what works today, does not always work tomorrow.”


When asked what motivates her, Wila said, “I want to make each resident’s last years their happiest and with a good quality of life. Listening to their stories and words of wisdom is priceless to me.”


Landis.org | FLOURISH | Summer 2020 • 23


Enriching


Lives, Together


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