June 26, 2020
Dear Families,
As the weekend begins, many of us find ourselves in the beginning stages of adjusting to a ‘summer with restrictions’. We are all trying to adjust our thinking to the idea of how we will navigate our own individual ‘reopening’ as we move into the Green Phase in Bucks County.
We have also given summer vacations consideration and have placed our own protocols and expectations of our staff during this continued uncertainty. Should any of our staff have airplanes, airports, cruise ships, or hotels in their vacation plans, we will expect them to have a COVID-19 test before returning to work. This becomes even more critical as many states find themselves now dealing with a spike in transmissions.
We have congratulated all of them for ‘making the right decisions’ outside the workplace because it’s been made evident in the fact that we have maintained this COVID-19-free status throughout these difficult few months. We fully expect that to continue, but also respect the fact that while we have watched the statistics decline in our local area, there will remain a concern that it will resurface at some point. And so, our vigilance continues.
We are also very well aware of how difficult it remains for all of you and for our residents. Believe me when we say, it’s difficult for us as well. We are committed to keeping your family members safe and well. The process is hard and it hurts. We would love nothing better than to open our doors again and welcome each and every one of you back into our facility with open arms...but we cannot do that as of yet. We must follow the guidelines set forth by the CDC and the State Department of Health. They have stated that we must continue to be restrictive for at least another 28 days following the beginning of the Green Phase. While it’s difficult to hear, we also agree with this directive. Opening up will need to be conducted thoughtfully and we will share those guidelines with you as we get closer to the actual reopening of visitations. Meanwhile, our porch visits continue; our FaceTime calls continue and our communication with all of you continues! We encourage ANY of you to reach out to us with questions or concerns!
And last, but not least...we just had our Department of Health COVID-19 Survey and we passed with Zero Deficiencies! This survey was conducted this week by a DOH surveyor who came unannounced (as they always do) and proceeded to look at our infection control polices and procedures as well as observing the actions of our staff and inspection of the separate COVID-19 unit that has been constructed. She was very complementary of our hard work and our COVID-19-free status!
Thank you once more for all your support....we need that desperately.
Wishing all of you a beautiful weekend; stay safe and enjoy some of the freedoms we can now enjoy!!
Michelle
Michelle Knobloch
Chief Executive Officer
Terry
Terry Ziegler
Director of Nursing
