We were fortunate to have recorded a video with Dr. Morgan Katz to talk about PPE, testing, and to offer reassurance to our teams providing care. Morgan Katz, M.D., MHS, is an Assistant Professor of infectious disease at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Her research has been devoted to making infection prevention practices feasible and effective in the long-term care setting. At the beginning of the pandemic, she was named the long-term care incident commander for the COVID-19 response in the Johns Hopkins Health System, and served on the Maryland state strike team to provide testing, cohorting, and infection control guidance to facilities across Maryland.

She is now serving as a member of the Independent Nursing Home Commission to guide the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid in their response to Coronavirus in post-acute and long-term-care.  We can’t thank Dr. Katz enough for doing this video, and for all she does.

We are at the point in this pandemic where people, including healthcare team members, are still concerned about the virus but are also tired of wearing PPE, isolation, and social distancing. Away from work, our healthcare heroes understand the importance of isolating, but like everyone else, they have things to do and want to get out more. There is at least one irony here: in many respects given the protocols and the available equipment, our healthcare heroes are likely safer at work than in the community-at-large. Still, we MUST address the fear, acknowledge the fatigue, continue to be a resource, and partner to be ever-vigilant in the fight we still face.

As we’ve said all along, we will be fighting this virus until there is a broadly available vaccine. We know people with pre-existing conditions, diverse communities, and older people are most at risk. And, we also know that if a community has a high positivity rate, so will skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, assisted living campuses, and senior housing in that community.

Please see this HFAM Wellness Flyer with links and advice to

help take care of ourselves as we continue this fight.

When is the right time to honor heroes in the middle of a fight? Whenever and however you can! Since June, with the generosity of the Horizon Foundation we have provided 1485 meals, supported 23 centers and campuses, and provided direct aid to 30 frontline healthcare heroes in Howard County.

On Thursday, September 3, we plan to come together in-person in a socially distanced way and online to honor 15 frontline healthcare heroes. We appreciate all the sacrifices that healthcare teams have made and continue to make during this crisis. While every healthcare worker truly deserves praise and recognition, we want to celebrate a handful of our frontline heroes – this will be the start. 

See this flyer for more information and to nominate your healthcare hero today.

Friends, at least today you are winning the battle against COVID-19 – few people are testing positive, fewer are getting sick, more people are winning their battle against the virus. While cases went up in the community-at-large and thus in our setting after the July 4 holiday, we did not see the double digit hotspots we saw in March and April. This is directly related to the outstanding work of you and your people! Sadly, there still will be tough days ahead, and in many respects we continue to fight with one hand tied behind our backs, but I am confident that we will get through this arm-in-arm together.

Be well,

Joe DeMattos

President and CEO