Residents and Families,

While we were all busy focusing on our responses to this pandemic, you may not have not been aware that we changed our system for Resident and visitor check in /check out.  The new system, Accushield, was designed specifically for retirement communities and is very user friendly. Accushield has screening questions built into the system.  Upon arrival you will answer the questions electronically, and the system will be eventually be set-up to take a thermal scan of your temperature.  Accushield will alert us to any elevated temperatures immediately or if anyone answers yes to any of the screening questions.  The new visitor badges will also display your photo.

Testing of all Health Care Center (HCC) Residents and all of our Employees is going smoothly.  Our number of Residents who are still in complete droplet precautions is down to six.  These Residents are in our HCC quarantine area, known as the red zone.  The red zone is physically isolated from the rest of the building by a plastic wall and only specific Employees may enter this area.  Once inside, the Employees stay there until their shift ends and then they exit to home via a side door.  As the number of Residents in this area decreases, we will move the wall back until the last Resident clears and then we can dismantle the zone.  The guidance we are under currently dictates that we can move into the next phase when we are 28 days past the last positive case.  Our last positive result as of now was on 6/18/2020

As we continue through our yellow phase with the goal of getting back to some semblance of normal hopefully in the near future, housekeeping is transitioning to return to normal cleaning schedules for our IL apartments.  I am going to ask Independent Living Residents to once again start taking their apartment trash back down to the hallway trash cans.  We implemented the trash bags in the doorways to assist in keeping Residents out of the hallways as much as possible. Now with the increased ability for IL Residents to move about the community at large, it is now time to return to the expectation that trash is taken to receptacles rather than left in hallways.  IL apartment cleaning schedules will be shared shortly.

As a reminder everyone in the community must wear a face mask; Residents must wear a face mask or some face covering that will cover the nose and mouth area, at all times in public, and practice social distancing of six feet (6’) distance from each other. 

While I wish I had all positive news, there are little signs of brightness, hope and moving forward.  We need to be thoughtful about our process and remain very thankful to all of you for your support, your patience and your thoughtfulness.  Feel secure in knowing that our Employees are here each day, and they continue to care for and support everyone here.  As we move through the yellow phase, we hope you will stay safe and well. 

Please take care of yourselves, and I will be in touch again soon.