This message includes:

COVID-19 vaccine clinics are starting soon. Providers need to act now to get ready. AHCA/NCAL is hosting a webinar on Thursday, December 10 at 4:00 pm to walk you through how to get ready and promote high vaccination rates in your building. 

December 10, 2020 | 4:00 pm

 

The webinar is open to everyone. Registration is required, but lines are limited. This webinar will be recorded and made available if you are not able to join live. 

Is your facility ready to face a most unusual holiday season? The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged everyone to find new ways to celebrate this year. Join Barbara Speeding in exploring the variety of ways in which your facility can maintain the warmth and good cheer of the holidays while keeping everyone safe and healthy. Inspiring your residents and staff to come together as a community to create new holiday traditions can be the most effective way to ease the pain of separation. This session offers practical approaches to satisfying the psychosocial needs of your facility family at this very significant time of year.

December 11, 2020 | 11:00 am -12:00 pm

Advance registration required. This session is appropriate to all long term care disciplines and positions.

DSS’s Division of Licensing Programs announced that the Northam Administration has provided funding for personal protective equipment (PPE) “Push Packs” for all assisted living facilities (ALFs). These supplies should be delivered by December 31, 2020. The distribution details are outlined in this memo.

PPE Push Packs for ALFs will consist of the following items:

DSS also reminded ALFs of the importance of reporting your PPE inventory and burn rate on a weekly basis. This needs to be completed each Tuesday by 5:00 pm at the following link: https://arcg.is/nTOiP.

Weekly reporting allows the Virginia Department of Emergency Management to monitor PPE inventory and ensure ALFs do not reach critical shortages in their PPE supplies. Please review the Assisted Living Facility PPE Distribution and Information memo dated May 6, 2020, for more information about PPE Distribution to ALFs.

Today, December 9, DSS issued a memo outlining the safety expectations for onsite inspections along with its onsite inspection safety protocol, and a related screening form.

The memo states that in response to COVID-19, the majority of inspections are being conducted through a virtual and/or a desk review process as a means of limiting in-person interaction in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and support community health. However, there may be times when a licensing inspector must be physically present in a facility in order to conduct inspections related to situations involving serious health and safety concerns, inspections of programs seeking initial licensure, and other situations identified by the department that necessitate an onsite inspection.

Your licensing inspector may reach out to you in the future to review your facility’s established COVID-19 health and safety protocols to ensure the inspector is familiar with and can easily follow them, prior to and during the inspection. If you have any questions related to this memo, you may contact the regional licensing office that serves your location.

December 10, 2020 | 4:00 pm

VHCA-VCAL Member Call on COVID-19