While other staff members express their feelings towards the COVID-19 pandemic on the Wall of Fame at the four Yee Hong Centres, Tony Chan, a part-time PSW at the Markham Centre, wrote a Chinese poem about what he witnessed in the home: teamwork, sacrifice, commitment, compassion, and perseverance.
Tony himself exemplifies these qualities too: at the start of pandemic when there was a severe staff shortage for night and day shifts, Tony stepped up to the plate and filled the shifts as much as he could, despite there was one confirmed case at the time. To alleviate the risk of bringing the virus home, he chose to separate himself from his family temporarily.
“During these difficult times, the sacrifices that Tony and other team members have made to care for residents are admirable,” says Zu Wang Tang, Markham Assistant Director of Resident Care. “They live the Yee Hong Values. Perhaps that is the legendary Yee Hong Spirit.”
Here is Tony’s poem: 頤是長安居 / 康是老所依 / 長幼無差別 / 均須護蔭之 / 餐庭獨一卓 / 誰煮一室香 / 分餐姐細語 / 間或有嚴詞 / 樓層內外潔 / 需要細心工 / 衣衫日換替 / 衫房同工辛 / 白衣無閒逸 / 護工汗濕衣 / 管者下文書 / 示各正執行 / 此工須聆聽 / 雙手未曾停 / 且護長者安晚年 / 同袍各有康健身