CHESTERFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — Many nursing homes are on lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. That means no visitors for the next few weeks. That leaves patients feeling even more isolated.
One family is doing what they can to raise the spirits of a loved one staying in a Chesterfield senior facility.
Sisters Christine Ross and Michelle Olko have a new way of checking in on their mom. Carol Felstow, 72, is staying at the Village of East Harbor senior facility in Chesterfield.
She’s been there since late February recovering from breaking her leg after falling out of her wheelchair.
“She misses us for sure and we miss her a lot,” Olko said.
Felstow had been living with her daughter Michelle Olko for several years.
The matriarch leaned on her four children and seven grandchildren since her husband Vern passed in 2015.
The family visited Felstow everyday since she was admitted, but the facility shut their doors last week amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“Sad that we are not with her every day, but this is just a temporary thing that is hopefully going to pass soon,” said Felstow's daughter Christine Ross.
With help from the nurses and staff, family visit Felstow through her window. Sometimes they bring her balloons or leave a pinwheel outside her window.
With the number of coronavirus cases growing, including at least one in a senior facility in Oakland County, the sisters say it might be safer for their mother to stay in her room.
“That makes it a little more real for her and all of the world shutting down a little bit,” Ross said.
The sisters are thankful for the staff during this difficult time.
Felstow is expected to recover there for at least three more weeks. Family members plan to visit everyday while she recovers.