Mon Valley Healthcare honors staff for dedication during snowstorm

Some spent several days at the facility during last month’s huge snowstorm to make sure residents were cared for.

Valentine’s Day often brings flowers, cards and candlelit dinners.

At Mon Valley Healthcare this year, strawberry milkshakes and hot cocoa came with certificates of appreciation for staff who rode out one of the harshest snowstorms the Mon Valley has seen in years.

More than a foot of snow fell across the region during the last weekend in January, closing roads and keeping families at home. But inside the walls of Mon Valley Healthcare in Carroll Township (formerly known as Mon Valley Care Center, it is now under new ownership), residents never missed a meal, their medication or a moment of connection.

Instead, they were surrounded by staff who chose to stay.

“It was just teamwork,” said Activities Director Jen Mellinger, her voice breaking as she remembered that weekend. “It was teamwork, but it was like they were all in. I’ve been here five years, and that’s never happened before. Everybody did whatever they had to do. There was no, ‘That’s not my job.’” When forecasters warned how severe the storm would be, employees didn’t hesitate.

“We found out how bad this one was going to be, and our staff immediately started making plans,” Mellinger said. “They left their families, you know, to be here for the residents. There was no interruption in our care here.”

Air mattresses were set up in offices. Blankets and pillows lined couches and quiet corners. The director of nursing spent the weekend in the building. The personal care home administrator stayed as well. Staff members cooked meals for those staying overnight, and Mellinger came in to prepare food to keep everyone going.

Mon Valley Healthcare Maintenance Director Christopher Coughenour and OSPTA Activities Director Alysia Newman make a cup of hot chocolate at a coco bar set up for staff appreciation at Mon Valley Healthcare on Friday.

For Maintenance Director Christopher Coughenour, the plan meant turning a rental truck into a lifeline.

“I had to coordinate making sure that the lots were getting plowed so snow was being removed,” he said. “And I was driving around the whole time in a rental truck picking up employees.”

It wasn’t part of his job description. It was his idea.

“I kind of signed up for it,” he said.

From Saturday through Sunday, Coughenour picked up nearly 20 employees. The farthest trip was to Brownsville, and even the shortest drives were tough.

“There wasn’t anywhere I could not get to,” he said. “I just kind of made it happen. I almost got stuck once, but that was it.”

He stayed at work from Saturday through Tuesday, stopping home briefly once or twice to check on things before heading back. At one point, he did get stuck digging himself out after checking on his house.

“But then I was right back here,” he said.

Inside, the focus never shifted from residents.

With roads impassable, families couldn’t visit. Staff made sure that didn’t mean silence.

“When families would call in, we arranged for them to talk to their loved one,” Mellinger said.

Activities continued. Conversations filled the halls. From the residents’ point of view, little had changed.

“Honestly, from their perspective, nothing was different,” she said. “They were excited to see the staff members here hanging out with them.”

By the time Valentine’s Day week arrived, something else had changed.

“When it was all said and done, something changed with the staff that day,” Mellinger said. “We grew closer.”

The effort did not go unnoticed. Care partners from OSPTA Home Health and Hospice, who work closely with Mon Valley Healthcare, reached out after hearing what had happened.

“When I heard about what they did here during the storm, I just wanted to make sure they knew that what they did was a big deal, especially for the residents here,” said OSPTA Activities Director Alysia Newman.

After speaking with Mellinger, Newman created certificates recognizing the staff’s dedication. They were presented Friday, just ahead of Valentine’s Day.

“It might seem like a small thing, but it really isn’t,” Mellinger said. “A lot of times staff can easily get overlooked, so it meant a lot.”

Kristin Barr, community liaison for OSPTA, said her team understands the demands of answering calls in any condition.

“Our nurses are largely on call, and when the call comes in they have to go,” Barr said. “We cover every county in the area, and we have Subarus for our work vehicles so they go OK in the snow and we make it work. It’s impressive what they did.”

On Friday, residents gathered for a Valentine’s social with strawberry milkshakes. Staff members, some of whom had slept in their offices just weeks earlier, warmed up at a hot cocoa bar.

Valentine’s Day may come with hearts and flowers. At Mon Valley Healthcare, it also comes with gratitude for a staff that proved love is often as simple as being there when it matters most.