A 63-year-old man was talking to his mother through a window over the phone, "How have you been?" The man was standing outside a private residential home in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo, where his 88-year-old mother lives.
Facility staff were not present at the time, the mother and her son were alone.
"What do you want to do?" he asked.
"I want to go outside," she replied.
In February, when the new coronavirus spread, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry issued a notice to local governments stating it is desirable that nursing homes and other such facilities restrict visits from outsiders, except in inevitable cases.
Since the notice was issued, 35 people were found to have been infected at a facility in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, and 14 died. The ministry has urged to continue this measure even after the state of emergency was lifted on May 25.
Fifty-six people aged between 67 and 102 live in the facility, which has been closed to all except staff and doctors since late February. Like this man, visitors meet with residents only through a window.
Residents can bathe in the sun and do exercises on balconies but have not been out for about 3-1/2 months.
Families complain that the situation is like confinement or worry about the health of the residents as they exercise less. In response to such backlash, the facility has made phone calls to each family seeking understanding by asking them to "cooperate to protect your loved one." In addition, it sends letters with pictures to report on the residents' current situation.
In the past, about 25 staff members helped residents eat and bathe, but the number of staff has reduced to about a dozen to reduce chances of bringing the virus into the facility. Even after the state of emergency was lifted, the staff have refrained from going out, except for going to the facility.
In early April, a female resident was taken to hospital by ambulance after developing a fever and being unable to breathe. Five residents on the same floor also had a fever, and all residents on the floor were on standby in their rooms for about two weeks. The facility had to stay alert amid fear of the outbreak, up until it discovered that the woman tested negative to a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, and other residents were found to have been sick for different reasons.
"Both the residents and we are stressed up to the limit," said Ryoichi Yaginuma a 44-year-old manager of the facility as he touched his hair that has not been cut since February.
At a day-care center in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, an acrylic board that stands about 60 centimeters tall to block droplets was set in front of elderly people who gathered for lunch on June 1.
Expression of relief grew on the faces of staff when one of the elderly people said, "Thank you for thinking of us," when told not to chat while eating.
The average age of the 30 visitors to the facility is 88. They stay here for about seven hours a day doing puzzles and growing vegetables in the field to maintain their cognitive function and physical strength. They sometimes bathe with assistance.
The Tokyo metropolitan government did not request the closure of nursing care facilities when the state of emergency was declared. However in Nagoya, 73 people who visited a day-care center were infected with the virus, and some facilities in Setagaya Ward closed to prevent infections.
This facility, however, has kept accepting visitors by reducing visits to 1-1/2 hours, checking visitors' temperatures and disinfecting the facility.
"The infection is really scary. But, the suspension of our services could disrupt users' lives and affect their cognitive function," facility manager Hidetsugu Takahashi, 38, said, adding that the decision to keep the facility open was made after thorough consideration. "If there is no service such as bathing available, burdens on families will increase."
In response to requests from families of users, the facility resumed regular hours of services from this month but will not offer programs that could spread droplets or create close contact settings, such as singing or playing Japanese karuta cards.
Heatstroke caused by wearing protective masks is a concern from now. The facility opens seven windows to ventilate while using an air conditioner. Takahashi said: "We don't know what is right, but we must face the various problems and discover new ways to provide nursing care."
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