Week #2

Last week in clinical I went to the Arnold Center and Pinecrest Farms of Midland. Both were for observation purposes. The Arnold Center is a factory type place for people with mental retardation, brain injuries and disabilities. They do simple jobs such as counting rags into bundles of 50, removing parts of pins for Delphi and organizing pharmacy boxes by color. They do a lot of work for Delphi though. They work from 9 to 3pm and get 'paid by the piece.' For many it is hard to stay on task and for others the simples tasks of counting and sorting colors is very difficult. They have 'job coaches' to help them stay on task. For some people who work there, they make enough money so they don't have to receive disability and some eventually get jobs in the community. The Arnold Center also offers 'on site' jobs, where they will travel into the community to work. I didn't observe that portion. I didn't know places like this existed, so it was very eye-opening to me.

The other place I went to was called Pinecrest Farms, an adult foster care and infirmary. They house up to 60 people ranging from the frail elderly, cognitively impaired, developmentally delayed and the mentally ill. The age range was 26 to 96. I basically walked around, talking with several different residents, practicing my 'therapeutic communication.' I met some interesting people :)

This week I'm back at the hospital in Midland, we will see that that brings...