COVID-19 has changed the world, and we have all experienced those changes in a variety of ways. For some of us that meant working, or learning, from home, for others, it meant being distant from loved ones, while others lost jobs and businesses, and many more have lost their lives. After facing all of these hardships we are all looking forward to things returning to some semblance of normal, or open. One thing that seems to be a prerequisite for most countries around the world to re-open fully is an effective vaccine (Guidry et al., 2020). Yet, now that there are 2 vaccines, with Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), in the US, there are growing concerns that many people will refuse, or choose not, to get vaccinated. “Vaccine hesitancy overall has risen so substantially that the World Health Organization (WHO) now considers it a major threat to global health” (Guidry et al., 2020, p. 2). There are several different factors that may make someone hesitant to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Hallsworth and Buttenheim (2020) break those factors down to three categories: rationalization, habituation, and rejection. Rationalization decreases vaccine compliance because people may think that they don’t need the vaccine as they are going to work, and doing many of the same things they did pre-COVID (Hallsworth & Buttenheim, 2020). Asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 also make rationalization more likely, because some people will assume that they had COVID-19 already and therefore don’t need to be immunized, or they will think that any illness they had during the pandemic was COVID-19 (Hallsworth & Buttenheim, 2020). Similarly, Hallsworth and Buttenheim (2020) describe habituation as people just accepting that it is inevitable that they will contract COVID-19, and therefore they have less motivation to get the vaccine or take other precautions. Rejection, however, is where people are resistant to getting a vaccine because after months of lockdowns, quarantine, economic hardship, etc., people may believe that they have already put in the effort to manage the pandemic and don’t see why they should now have to get a vaccine on top of everything else (Hallsworth & Buttenheim, 2020). Another factor that decreases the likelihood of vaccination is concern about the vaccine itself. For some, it is a concern that the whole process of developing the COVID-19 vaccine has been rushed, at the expense of safety, due to political pressure and the desire for a quick fix to the pandemic (Hallsworth & Butteheim, 2020; Schoch-Spana et.al., 2020) Others, who may have been onboard for taking the COVID-19 vaccine as long as it went through the usual process of approval, are now uncertain about taking a vaccine that has received emergency use authorization (EUA) (Cohen, 2020). Even with the EUAs, individuals who reported being more likely to get the vaccine are those who are younger, white, and with fewer barriers to getting the vaccine (Guidry et al., 2020). Overall, individuals of color report being less willing, or likely, to get the COVID-19 vaccine, due to concerns about the vaccine’s effectiveness, and distrust of the government and other agencies that are developing and distributing the vaccine (Cohen, 2020; Guidry et al., 2020; Schoch-Spana, 2020). Concerns about the vaccine’s effectiveness may decrease the number of parents vaccinating their children due to the fact that there have been lower risks associated with COVID-19 for that age group (Hallsworth & Buttenheim, 2020). Similarly, the fact that people in different ethnic groups and geographic locations have been impacted in vastly different ways by COVID-19, could result in a belief in some places or groups that a vaccine is not needed to manage the virus in that location or population (Hallsworth & Buttenheim, 2020). In response to all of those concerns, the Working Group on Readying Populations for COVID-19 with the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security has several recommendations for the US government and other agencies and policy makers (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020). The first recommendation is to figure out what different communities’ understandings and expectations are by having Congress fund and partner with state and local health agencies, and then make sure that there is a nationwide rollout of promotional information about the COVID-19 vaccine’s benefits, risks, and availability (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020).  Secondly, Schoch-Spana et al. (2020) recommend making the COVID-19 vaccine available for free, and having the federal government and other agencies work with the public and state, and local, health officials to reassess the vaccine allocation plan to ensure that vaccine distribution is seen as fair and equitable to people from different racial, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds (p.6). By making the vaccine free and reassessing the distribution plan the government and other agencies could help remove some barriers to getting the vaccine and begin rebuilding Americans’ trust in the government (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020). Aside from making the vaccinations available to all Americans who want to get vaccinated, for no cost, Schoch-Spana et al. (2020) also recommend making the vaccine available in non-medical locations like churches, schools, etc., pairing the distribution of vaccines with other services, and then clearly communicating where, when, and how people can get vaccinated, including any information on how much it will cost, if there is a cost (p. 7). Another way to increase COVID-19 vaccinations is to communicate with local health departments and communities directly, while also making sure to get trusted members of the community to speak positively about the vaccine to effectively address and dispel misinformation that has been released on the vaccine (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020). Additionally, at the federal level, there should be an apolitical panel of experts that, “review, synthesize, and report on best practices for engaging communities in vaccine allocation, deployment, and communication systems to achieve equity, solidarity, and good health outcomes” (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020, p. 8). Similarly, each state should have an oversight committee that takes data on access, allocation, distribution, and understanding and acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccines, to make sure that all groups have equal access to the vaccines (Schoch-Spana et al., 2020).  All of these recommendations could address some of the barriers that make people hesitant to take the COVID-19 vaccines. However, even if the US government implements all of the above recommendations it may not be enough to convince some people to take the COVID-19 vaccines. Large-scale vaccination of the population, along with other preventative measures like social distancing and wearing masks are essential to managing the pandemic and protecting yourself and others in your community from COVID-19 (CDC, 2020). While we have all experienced significant changes to our lives, and in many cases overwhelming losses, due to COVID-19 we now have 2 vaccines that could enable us to return to some semblance of our pre-COVID world.   References:

CDC. (2020, December 21). Benefits of Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine. Retrieved fromhttps://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/vaccine-benefits.html

Cohen, J. (2020). Here’s how the U.S. could release a COVID-19 vaccine before the election—and why that scares some. Science, online. Retrieved from https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/08/here-s-how-us-could-release-covid-19-vaccine-election-and-why-scares-some#

Guidry, J. P. D., Laestadius, L. I., Vraga, E. K., Miller, C. A., Perrin, P. B., Burton, C. W., … Carlyle, K. E. (2020). Willingness to get the COVID-19 vaccine with and without emergency use authorization. American Journal of Infection Control, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2020.11.018

Hallsworth, M., & Buttenheim, A. (2020). Challenges Facing a COVID-19 Vaccine: A Behavioral Science Perspective. Behavioral Scientist, online. Retrieved from https://behavioralscientist.org/challenges-facing-a-covid-19-vaccine-a-behavioral-science-perspective/

Schoch-Spana, M., Brunson, E., Long, R., Ravi, S., Ruth, A., Trotochaud,M. (2020). on behalf of the Working Group on Readying Populations for COVID-19 Vaccine. The Public’s Role in COVID-19 Vaccination: Planning Recommendations Informed by Design Thinking and the Social, Behavioral, and Communication Sciences. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. https://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/our-work/pubs_archive/pubs-pdfs/2020/200709-The-Publics-Role-in-COVID-19-Vaccination.pdf

DE, or De-Escalation, is a process that involves the use of the Help, Prompt, and Wait strategies to help someone go from crisis to calm. While both the Prompt and Wait strategies can be used at any point on the staircase, the Help strategy should only be used at the bottom of the staircase. However, since there is no set sequence, it can be hard to know which strategy to start with and when to switch from one strategy to the next. The rest of this blog will break down each of the three Safety-Care De-Escalation strategies and when you should start with, or move on from, that strategy.

In Safety-Care, the first de-escalation strategy you learn about is the Help strategy. Help is a de-escalation strategy that focuses on having the person communicate what they need or want, instead of engaging in challenging behavior. This strategy can be done by having someone make a specific request like, “I want water.” Or, you could give the person 2-3 acceptable choices and have them make a selection from the options you provided. Another way to use the Help strategy involves asking the person an open-ended question like, “How can I help you?”. All three of these options have the person use some type of communication to express a need or want.

Therefore, you would use the Help strategy when you think the person is trying to get access to or avoid, a person, place, or thing. The exception to this would be if the person wants something that is unavailable. If you know the person wants something that is not available, then you would switch to the Prompt or Wait strategies instead. Once the person has escalated to the upper part of the staircase, the Help strategy would no longer be as effective. The reasons for this are that people are unable to communicate effectively when at the top of the staircase, providing access to something requested would result in reinforcement and you would not want to reinforce crisis behavior, and at the top of the staircase, the person is unlikely to ask for things that are available. You would also switch to the Prompt or Wait strategies if the individual becomes more agitated when you attempt to use the Help strategy.

While the Help strategy is all about communication, the Prompt strategy is about giving the person clear instructions to engage in safer behavior. The two types of behavior that you can prompt the person to engage in are incompatible and high-probability behavior. Behaviors are incompatible if they can’t happen at the same time, while high-probability behaviors are things the person is likely to do. Sitting is a behavior that is incompatible with pacing. Taking a deep breath, counting, or answering simple questions are all examples of high-probability behaviors. Prompts can be given verbally or nonverbally, with gestures, signs, or in writing. The Prompt strategy is the ideal place to start if the person is likely to follow directions, or if the Help strategy has not been successful, or caused the person to become more agitated.

However, if the individual is unlikely to follow prompts that are given then you would switch to the Help or Wait strategies. Conversely, if the person has become more compliant after several prompts, you may switch from the Prompt to the Help strategy to continue to guide the person down the staircase. Also, if the Prompt strategy has made the person more agitated then you should stop prompting and switch to the Wait strategy.

WAIT is an acronym that reminds us what to do during the Wait strategy, and it stands for “Why Am I Talking?”. During the Wait strategy, staff and others should not talk with, touch, or stare at the agitated individual. This strategy is often more successful if you clear the audience, move the person to a less stimulating location, or keep other staff and peers from accidentally engaging with the agitated person. While using the Wait strategy, staff should be clearing dangerous objects and substances, removing vulnerable peers, and always monitoring for the individual’s safety. Wait is a wonderful strategy to start with when you want to remove all external reinforcement, the person would benefit from being given time and space to de-escalate, nothing else is working, or the Prompt and Help strategies have made the person more agitated.

Although this strategy is a great place to start when Help and Prompt have been unsuccessful, you can’t stay in Wait forever. At some point, when the individual has shown some sign of de-escalation or taken even a small step down the staircase, then staff should attempt to switch back to using either the Help or Prompt strategies, depending on which strategy they feel would be more effective in the moment.

Knowing your individuals will make the use of all three De-Escalation strategies more effective and help give staff a better idea of when to use one strategy versus another. Help, Prompt, and Wait can all be effective and should be used in a fluent manner where staff switch from one strategy to the next, in response to the agitated individual’s behavior. Remember that there is no sequence and you should start with whichever strategy will be most effective in that moment, with that person.

References: Safety-Care Manual v. 6

 
Why we may not be getting the sleep we need:
COVID-19 has erupted into our world and brought with it a whole host of fears, anxieties, and stressors. Those anxieties, fears, and stressors make it much harder, or in some cases, nearly impossible to get a good night’s sleep, or any sleep at all. Yet sleep is something we all need. Getting a good night’s sleep can improve your physical and emotional health, which is essential to your safety and wellbeing during a global pandemic. The CDC has even cited sleep issues as one of the possible long-term side effects of COVID-19 (CDC, 2020). So, what are some steps we can take to improve the quality and quantity of our sleep?  
How we can get the sleep we need:
Well, one thing we can do is to set a sleep schedule. For most of us, the pandemic has drastically changed our daily routine due to work and school now also, often, occurring at home. When all of our worlds combined, some of us may have stopped following our pre-COVID routines. However, those routines, specifically going to bed and waking up at the same time everyday help improve our sleep (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020; Sleep Foundation, 2020). Our sleep routine should include time to unwind and get ready for bed. Winding down should avoid high-energy activities like exercise, or things like screen time, which can make it harder for us to fall asleep. (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020; Sleep Foundation, 2020; Jin, Hanley, & Beaulieu, 2013, p. 162) Another thing we can do to improve our sleep is to reserve our beds for sleep (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020; (Sleep Foundation, 2020). Even though our home has now become an office, home, daycare, school, social center, etc. it is really important that we set up boundaries and try to avoid doing things like work, school, hobbies, eating or watching shows on our devices in bed. You want to associate your bed with sleep, not with other activities that may be some of the stressors that are keeping you up at night. Exercise is an additional way to improve your sleep (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020; Sleep Foundation, 2020). It does not have to be high-intensity exercise, even going for a walk could be helpful. Again, just make sure you are not exercising right before you go to bed (Jin, Hanley, & Beaulieu, 2013, p. 162). Staying active during the day may not only help you sleep but may also help you avoid napping throughout the day. If you do need a nap, try to keep them short as longer naps may not only leave you groggy but also disrupt your sleep for the coming night (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020). Now let’s say that you are trying these recommendations and you are still waking up and staring at your ceiling in the middle of the night, what should you do? As counter-intuitive as this may seem, you should get up. Once up, do a quiet, relaxing, and not overly reinforcing activity until you feel sleepy and then return to bed (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020). Also, if you have continued sleep issues, your sleep habits are interfering with your daily life, or your sleep issues are distressing you then you should reach out to a physician for help (Bei, Rajaratnam, Drummond, & Manber, 2020).
Review:
Sleep is essential to our well-being and can help us stay healthy, which is more important than ever, during the pandemic. If you want to improve your sleep try to set a sleep schedule, set up a bedtime routine, reserve your bed for sleep, exercise, stay active, and avoid napping, especially long naps, where possible.  
Resources
Bei, B., Rajaratnam, S., Drummond, S., & Manber, R. (2020, November 27). Sleeping tips when staying indoors during isolation period. Retrieved March 26, 2021, from https://github.com/beisci/SleepInfo/blob/master/sleep_in_isolation.md#sleeping-tips-when-staying-indoors-during-isolation-period CDC. (2020, November 13). Long-Term Effects of COVID-19. Retrieved March 26, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects.html Jin, C. S., Hanley, G. P., & Beaulieu, L. (2013). AN INDIVIDUALIZED AND COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO TREATING SLEEP PROBLEMS IN YOUNG CHILDREN. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 46(1), 161–180. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaba.16 Sleep Foundation. (2020, December 17). Sleep Guidelines During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Retrieved March 26, 2021, from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-guidelines-covid-19-isolation KEY WORDS: COVID-19 SLEEP SCHEDULE ROUTINE ACTIVE
By Master Trainer Beth Harlan
Employees in any profession face some level of risk when performing their day-to-day job responsibilities. While risks may vary by severity, frequency, and type, all employers should make an effort to reduce or remove risks to their employees. To do this, you can develop a comprehensive culture of safety at your workplace.
A safe workplace culture is generally defined as a core set of values, beliefs, and behaviors that prioritize staff and client safety in the workplace. 

Staff at All Levels Should Prioritize Safety

One step in developing a safety culture in your workplace is for staff at all levels of the organization to prioritize safety. To clarify, that prioritization needs to not only be clearly communicated in writing to all staff, but all staff need to observe their peers engaging in safe behavior. In order to get staff to engage in safe behavior, managers and leaders in the organization also need to engage in safe behaviors at work. They must also provide praise and other reinforcement for all other staff who engage in safe behavior.
Supervisors must lead by example.
For example, this could look like a supervisor wearing protective equipment when on the floor with clients. It could also look like praising a staff member for wearing a hat when they need to for their safety. Additionally, supervisors could hold meetings where the sole topic is safety. Staff would complete drills and role plays to practice the safety skills that apply to their everyday job tasks. These safety meetings could be a forum for staff to bring up safety concerns. It would provide a way for staff and their supervisors to work together to resolve those safety concerns. In order for those meetings to be successful, staff must be reinforced for their participation. Reinforcement should be given regularly enough to maintain the safe behavior of staff at all levels of the organization. Reinforcement for safety at work could include verbal praise or donuts for teams that frequently show good safety skills. This could also include a point system where not only supervisors, but other staff, could give each other points for engaging in safe behavior. These points could later be exchanged for other items. Leaders should also clearly make safety a significant factor affecting other policy-related decisions. For example, let’s say there is a new policy about how to report injuries. The leaders of the company should explain how this new reporting method will improve safety by increasing accurate and timely reporting of all injuries to staff or clients.

Improve Communication Between All Staff

All staff should be responsible for their clients’ and peers’ safety at work. If staff feel comfortable communicating to their peers and supervisors, they are more likely to report safety concerns. They are more likely to report errors that were made and any recommendations they may have for improving general safety at work.
Studies have shown that a safe workplace culture includes staff being actively engaged in resolving safety issues before they become large-scale problems for the company. Some ways that staff could improve communication are through the use of online forums like Slack. These forums allow staff to post and hold a dialogue about concerns they have at work. Improved communication among staff could also involve supervisor’s accessibility. This would include supervisors being more visible on the floor and meeting with staff frequently to check in . There can also be e-mail communication and notices posted in staff areas around the workplace . These would identify who staff can contact about safety concerns and how they should contact that person. In an ideal safe workplace culture, all staff see themselves as being responsible for safety. Additionally, they see safety as a priority every day at work.

Listen and Respond to Staff Concerns

In order for safety to be a daily priority, staff have to feel confident that their supervisors will respond to their concerns about safety. It is essential that supervisors and managers respond to safety concerns with respect, in a timely manner, and praise staff for bringing concerns to them. Staff are less likely to report if they work at an organization where reports of safety concerns are met with reprisals, punishment, harassment, or apathy from supervisors or other staff. There should be systems in place to support staff who are trying to report errors that occurred on the floor, or report issues that will likely lead to unsafe conditions if left unaddressed. Those systems could include an anonymous way for staff to report safety concerns, or supervisor training that teaches supervisors how to respond supportively and professionally to any reports of safety issues.
Conclusion
Over time, Safe workplace behavior should be integrated into daily routines. All staff should feel comfortable both letting other staff know when they are observing unsafe behavior and praising their peers when they engage in safe workplace behaviors. We are all responsible for workplace safety. The better we become at building safety cultures, the safer we will be as employees, and the safer our clients will be, regardless of setting. Check out some of our other blog posts: How to Make Reinforcement Effective and Organizational Resilience.

Citations:

Agnew, J. (2013, January 23)

Bernard, B. (2018). Safety Culture Oversight: An Intangible Concept for Tangible Issues within Nuclear Installations. Safety, 4(4), 45. doi: 10.3390/safety4040045

McSweeney, F. K., & Murphy, E. S. (2014). The Wiley-Blackwell Handbook of Operant and Classical Conditioning. John Wiley & Sons.

The essential role of leadership in developing a safety culture. (2017, March 1). Retrieved February 27, 2020.

By Master Trainer Beth Harlan

Superheroes have dominated pop culture over the past few years. While we’re used to looking for them on screen, all we really need to do is look in the mirror. We all have superpowers in some way. In the era of Covid-19 it is imperative that behavior analysts and other related personnel use their skills to help us all unlock those superpowers by teaching parents how to use values-based behavior strategies.

Some ways to accomplish this were outlined in the article “From helpless to hero: Promoting values-based behavior and positive family interaction in the midst of Covid-19” by Szabo et al., 2020. Below, I’ve grouped the article’s recommendations of how professionals can help families and clients unleash their superpowers. I’ve broken it down into the categories of set-up, values, time, and activities.

Set-Up

Designate different rooms in the home for different activities. Indicate which room is for work, leisure, sleep, etc. You can do this through the use of colored cards, giving the room different names. Include children in the naming or color-coding process.

Additionally, you can create a daily schedule with a picture of the room where each activity will occur. There can be many benefits to having children and parents change rooms for different activities across the day. Doing so can help with some of the stress of being home every day.

Visual modeling of skills involves using pictures to demonstrate how you want someone else to complete a skill. Parents can take pictures of how to complete various tasks and post those images around their home.

Use of cues like colored cards to indicate when a room is, and is not, available for use. For example, say a parent is on the phone for a business call in the guest room. In this case, the guest room would have a red card visible. Or let’s say a parent is watching a movie in the guest room. For this instance, a green card would be visible in the guest room to show it is okay to enter.

Visual Schedules can be used to help provide structure to the day at home. Show parents how to set them up, how to include visuals and how to make sure that reinforcement and breaks are included in this schedule for everyone in the family.

Values

Verbal statements that make following rules, sharing, helping others, and making the best of a difficult situation heroic, could help increase children’s engagement in those skills. Teaching families to use these statements could also empower all members of the family to engage in these behaviors more often.

This could potentially even improve the overall morale of the family. Examples of these statements include stating things like, “…superheroes model being patient for their sisters and brothers: I love seeing you show your brother how to be so patient” (Szabo et al., 2020, p. 14).

Daily Visioning is a skill that involves teaching families to start their day by coming together as a group. They will then review a written statement of their family vision, or goals, and the family’s schedule for the day. This skill could be combined with the visual schedules that were addressed above.

Displaying rules visually involves teaching families to not only set rules, but also post those rules visually for all members of the family to refer to. Combine this with verbal statements that make following rules a heroic action. This encourages and reinforces the entire family for following the rules and reminding others to do so as well.

Value clarification involves teaching family members to identify each other’s values by drawing a coat of arms, that includes visual representations of their top four to six values.

Time

Beat the timer is a strategy that parents could be taught to use. The goal of this strategy would be to decrease the time it takes family members to complete various activities.

Families can also be taught to use timers to indicate how long an activity will occur. They can also be used to tell how much time is left before an activity will end. This use of timers is aimed at improving transition between activities.

Pausing when upset is a very important coping skill that practitioners could teach caregivers and clients to help families respond more effectively to stressors.

Activities

Tootles are an activity where the whole family is given cards, post-its, or a piece of paper. They are then told to record, and later share, when they catch their family member engaging in prosocial or heroic behavior.

Jumble Jar is a container full of sentence starters, topics, or statements. This can help provide structure to family conversations at meal times.

Life timeline is another activity families can do together. In this activity, you put out a line of tape on the floor. On the tape, you place pictures, drawings and life events in chronological order, then review/relive those events as a family.

PAX Good Behavior Game is a set of practices that parents can be taught to apply at home. Small alterations can be made when taking the game out of the classroom and into the home. All members of the family can be on teams. This could be a great way to provide more reinforcement for prosocial behavior at home.

Math mountain is another activity you could teach parents. It involves solving problems to climb the mountain and get safely down the other side. It also includes ways to get and give support when someone gives an incorrect answer.

Computer cleanup is a simple activity that caregivers can be taught to use. This activity involves setting up a structured schedule with timers. Once a number of minutes of work is completed, then that family member can have a number of minutes of computer time.

5-4-3-2-1 is a simple activity that families can used to stay in the moment. This activity can be done by stating a different number of things they can see, hear, touch, smell, and taste.

Conclusion

Above, I have described some ways to teach values-based behavior strategies that the article recommends behavior analysts and related professionals teach to parents. It is especially helpful for those with children with special needs, to teach prosocial skills at home. These skills will help caregivers, parents, and children unlock their personal superpowers. It is important to note that many of these skills can be combined. Any practitioner teaching these skills to families should individualize their instruction of the skills above to match their clients’ and families’ needs.

For more information, and to read the whole article, please click here.

Additional Resources

Check out other articles to help parents with kids at home: How to Work From Home With Kids: Learning, Leisure, and Love in the time of Coronavirus, 4 Tips for Keeping Your Kids Physically Active During the Stay-at-Home Period, and Escape Maintained Challenging Behavior.

QBS offers a webinar training program called Safety-Care for Families. It is a training program that allows organizations to train families working with behaviorally challenging individuals at home.
To sign up or learn more, please email info@qbs.com.

References:

Szabo, T., Richling, S., Embry, D. D., Biglan, A., & Wilson, K. G. (2020, April 3). From Helpless to Hero: Promoting Values-Based Behavior and Positive Family Interaction in the Midst of Covid-19.

By Master Trainer Elizabeth Harlan

We all know the basic ways we can help: washing our hands, social distancing, and staying home when feeling sick. While these measures will help, there are a number of other ways that we can provide support to the members of our communities who are suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ways to help in your community

If you are financially able to do so, there are a number of ways that you can support your community. One way to do that is by ordering takeout from your favorite local restaurant.

Restaurant workers are facing economic hardship with the loss of shifts and tips. This is due to the fact that many restaurants across the country have been closed to all but delivery or takeout services to prevent the spread of COVID 19.

Another way to help is by purchase gift cards to your favorite stores. You can also provide support by donating money to your favorite local charity, food bank, nursing home, hospital, or shelter. There are a list of some organizations you could donate to at the end of this blog.

While all of the groups listed above would be happy to receive a financial donation, they are also in desperate need of other types of support. In some cases, they need supplies like:

For other organizations, their most desperate need is volunteers. There are many ways to help during the COVID-19 pandemic by volunteering. Organizations like the United Way, food banks, homeless shelters, and Meals on Wheels would appreciate any help they can get from healthy members of the community, due to increased demand for their services at this time. These organizations are working hard to protect volunteers by following the CDC’s recommendations for social distancing. Another way you can help in person, is by donating blood. You can go online at www.redcross.org to find a local blood drive near you.

Help during the COVID-19 pandemic by volunteering.

Ways to help from your home

However, if you would like to help from the comfort of your own home, you can call your neighbors, friends, and family to make sure that they are doing well and not feeling isolated, or alone, during the pandemic. You could also sign up for an app like Quarantine Chat that would randomly put you in contact with other people, from around the world, who are self-isolating and may be feeling lonely. The app doesn’t give out your phone number, and provides a topic for you to discuss with the other person.

There are many ways that you can help yourself and others during this outbreak. Some resources for how you can help are listed below. Resources are national or listed by state where possible.

National Organizations (for donations and/or volunteers):

Local Ways to Help During COVID-19 Pandemic

Alabama:
Alaska:
California:
Colorado:
Connecticut:
Georgia:
Massachusetts:
New Hampshire:
New Jersey:
New York:
Ohio:
Rhode Island:
Vermont:
Check out other blog posts:

Read some of our other blogs to help you navigate your way through the pandemic: How to Work From Home With Kids, Autism Mom Blog: COVID-19 Edition, and Increase Staff & Client Cleanliness using Behavioral Analysis.

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Interested in evidence-based behavioral safety and crisis prevention training? We’d love to learn more about your organization’s goals and how we can support your team with practical, compassionate, and proven strategies.