Update from Administrator – September 30, 2020
September 30, 2020
Dear Families and Friends,
As always, our team and I hope this email finds you safe and healthy.
We continue testing our staff and residents at regular intervals as required by CMS, CDC and DPH. We did have one resident test positive after being admitted to the hospital.
However, when the test was repeated, the result was negative. The resident is currently in the hospital and we will keep you updated. All other staff and residents in the building
have been tested and are COVID free.
Now for the exciting news and updates – Visitation
Indoor Visits
As you may have read or seen in the news, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued guidance to states on indoor visits, due to the changing weather. Our
latest update from the state Department of Public Health is that we are responsible to develop an indoor visitation plan and policy for our center that is thoughtful, safe, and compliant with the new state guidance. We plan to have more details to share with you ASAP, but please see some notes below on guidelines that we all must follow to ensure for everyone’s health and safety. We are as excited as you must be to hear this news and look forward to seeing you!
Nursing homes and visitors must adhere to the following conditions:
•According to the state guidance, we must limit the number of visitors per patient at one time and limit the total number of visitors in the center at a time. This will be based on the amount of physical space we have available for our designated visitation area.
•We need to limit the duration of visits to help ensure all patients can receive
visitors. Just like our outdoor visits, once we have more experience behind us, we can adjust this, if necessary.
•Cleaning and disinfecting of the designated visitation area will occur by our staff in between visits. This is another factor affecting the amount of time and numbers of visitors we can have in our center.
•Screening for anyone who enters our center -temperature and health screen questionnaire -will take place.
•We cannot allow visitors to move freely throughout our center; visitors will go directly to the designated visitation area.
•Hand hygiene must be followed and personal protection equipment (PPE) must be worn by visitors.
•Social distancing requirements remain as they do for our outside visits.
Indoor, End Stage of Life Care Visits
Should a new case of COVID be identified in the center, all inside visits, except end stage of life, will be temporarily put on hold.
Outside & “Alternative” Visits
Please know that outside and “alternative” visitations will continue. While the weather is changing, we will work to continue to do outside visits on our patio for as long as possible and window visits are still possible. The weather seems to be holding steady for now.
Remember that we do offer iPads for our residents to use for video visits, phone calls, etc. to ensure that you and your loved ones remain in contact, as best as you can during these very uncertain times.
As always, thank you for your patience and please stay safe and healthy!
Michael Chiappinelli