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4 Working Nurse l WorkingNurse.com June 15–July 27, 2020 ON THE QUICK Nursing & Healthcare News Meals for Nurses Local restaurants benefit, too! D o you have friends or family asking what they can do to support nurses during the pandemic? Several new grassroots initiatives are offering a way for people to do that while also supporting vulnerable restaurants. Lockdown Lunches If your facility hasn't made special arrangements for staff meals, the lockdown orders may have left you with precious few mealtime options. Some local lunch spots may be reopen- ing, but with restrictions on dine-in business, there's no guaran- tee they will survive COVID-19. These problems have inspired several grassroots efforts aimed at helping restaurants stay afloat while also giving peo- ple an opportunity to show their appreciation for healthcare workers in a tangible, tasty way. Meal Delivery Initiatives Beverly Hills resident Laura Margo recently launched Meal to Heal USA (www.mealtohealusa.org), which allows people to buy lunches for healthcare workers on the COVID-19 units at certain local hospitals, including Cedars-Sinai, UCLA and Southern California Hospital at Culver City. Participating restaurants enable customers to fund meals for local hospital staff by simply clicking a box on the restau- rant's takeout order form. Another meal delivery effort is the similarly named Meals to Heal (mealstoheal.co), founded by retired gaming executive Virginia McDowell and her former colleague, Chef Eric Brenner, who owns the Red Gravy restaurant in Colorado Springs. Their model is to crowdfund meal deliveries to local hospitals, EMS providers and testing sites across the U.S. To date, there have been more than 2,000 deliveries in 12 states, with efforts in progress in 13 other states. Getting Involved McDowell encourages people to take the initiative in setting up food deliveries for healthcare workers, even if there isn't an already-established program in your area. The Meals to Heal website has more information on how to get involved. "It's as easy as making a few phone calls to determine inter- est, and [then] coordinating delivery," she says. "Our experi- ence has been that the restaurants who participated were very grateful to be chosen." Such efforts are also a great way to support your colleagues on other units. WN Well-Being Initiative American Nurses Foundation offers stress-management tools A s the pandemic takes its toll on nurses' physical and mental health, the American Nurses Foundation (the philanthropic arm of the ANA Enterprise) is stepping up with resources to support nurses' wellbeing. Beyond Therapy While healthcare workers' physical safety is of paramount importance, the American Nurses Foundation is also concerned with the COVID-19 crisis's impact on nurses' emotional health. The Foundation's new Well-being Initiative is designed to help nurses better cope with pandemic stress. Here are some of the resources available: u Nurses Together If you'd benefit from a candid, judgment- free conversation with other nurses, Nurses Together allows you to arrange peer-to-peer calls via Zoom. Calls can be scheduled for any hour, seven days a week. u Narrative Expressive Writing Some people may find it easier to explore complex feelings through writing. The Foundation recently launched a five-week narrative writing program for nurses, offering pandemic-related writing prompts and confidential feedback. u Moodfit App If you'd like more frequent prompts and reminders for wellness activities like breathing exercises, journaling and medi- tation, the Foundation has arranged for a special nurse-focused version of the popu- lar Moodfit health app, which you can acti- vate by entering a program code after installing the app. This version also gives access to premium features (which nor- mally cost $19.99) at no extra charge. To learn more, visit the ANA website (www.nursingworld.org), go to their coro- navirus resources page and then click the "What You Need to Know" link. Financial Help For nurses who are unable to work due to COVID-19 — whether they themselves are ill, have had to leave work to care for a family member or are in employer-mandated quar- antine — the Foundation has also joined forces with Nurse Houses, Inc., to offer $1,000 grants to help pay ongoing expenses. To apply, visit pages.nursehouse.org/ apply-for-help. You can also donate to sup- port other nurses in need. WN For direct links to the websites cited, find these articles at WorkingNurse.com