[ti:‘Hug Tents’ Give Older America Needed Contact, Safely]
[by:www.21voa.com]
[00:00.00]更多听力请访问21VOA.COM
[00:00.04]The COVID-19 health crisishas made it harder for older Americans
[00:07.36]who are in assisted living homes
[00:10.08]to have physical contact with their families.
[00:14.24]The Juniper Village at Louisville is an assisted living home
[00:21.00]in a neighborhood near Denver, Colorado.
[00:25.76]It has fully vaccinated people living there and its workers.
[00:32.52]With the help of TRU Community Care,
[00:37.16]a nonprofit healthcare organization,
[00:40.48]Juniper Village created "hug tents" with plastic for people living there.
[00:48.80]Amanda Meier is a project coordinator with TRU Community Care.
[00:56.96]With the help of her husband and some volunteers,
[01:02.08]they built the "hug tent."
[01:05.24]It includes plastic arm sleeves for safe contact.
[01:12.28]The tents are giving families a way to stay connected
[01:17.68]and see each other in a safe way.
[01:21.04]The tents permit people to hug and be in close contact
[01:28.00]without infecting each other by using the plastic barrier.
[01:33.20]Anna Hostetter is the spokeswoman for Juniper Village.
[01:39.12]"I think it's just a huge weight off their shoulders,
[01:44.76]just being able to have that hug
[01:47.88]that they haven't had in so long," she said.
[01:52.96]During the planning of the "hug tents,"
[01:56.72]Hostetter said she was not sure
[02:00.48]if one could feel human contact through plastic.
[02:06.16]But she said the experience "was really special for our families."
[02:12.96]Juniper Village plans to continue using the tents.
[02:19.48]Since the coronavirus health crisis started,
[02:23.88]similar "hug tents" have been created
[02:27.32]around the United States, England and in Brazil.
[02:31.88]Len Hartman is a 77-year-old dementia patient at Juniper Village.
[02:40.80]Lynda Hartman, his wife of nearly 55 years,
[02:45.20]was able to experience what life was like
[02:48.20]before the health crisis by hugging Len.
[02:52.40]"It felt so good. I kept hitting his glasses
[02:56.20]when I hugged him, though," Lynda said.
[03:00.08]Lynda can no longer take care of Len by herself
[03:04.56]because of broken bones in her back.
[03:07.84]"I really needed it...It meant a lot to me,
[03:12.76]and it's been a long, long time,"
[03:16.16]Lynda Hartman said after her short visit in the hug tent.
[03:23.96]I'm Armen Kassabian.
[03:26.64]更多听力请访问21VOA.COM