Family Newsletter: Volume 1 / Issue 3
“STAY CONNECTED”
We are pleased to announce a new feature on our website that enables communication with your loved one. You can send text messages, share photos and videos or request a video call.
After Every Storm Comes a Rainbow
As of May 31, 2020, Loyalhanna has successfully eradicated the COVID-19 virus from within its walls. FINALLY! The battle scars are still fresh, and the war is not yet over, but this milestone was met with quiet celebration mixed with ongoing concern for keeping it out for good.
Life-after-COVID within the facility is still far removed from the normal day to day routine. Our units remain quarantined, there are no communal activities, and our dining room is still closed. Staff and residents are wearing masks, and our designated new admission hall still looks more like a hospital unit than a home-like environment due to the use of required Personal Protective Equipment.
Even though we are now clear, the COVID-19 virus continues to wreak havoc in our communities as everyone struggles to deal with significant life changes, including masking, social distancing, travel advisories, supply shortages, and closed businesses. I am sure that your lives have been touched in many ways, which includes being kept apart from your loved ones for so long. We recognize the hardships this has caused for you and our residents, and we are working to develop a plan for “re-opening” the facility to visitors that will meet all the guidelines coming out of the Governor’s office and the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
We miss your smiling faces, too, and the joy you will bring to the faces of our residents will no-doubt melt our hearts. More information on moving into this next phase will be shared as it is developed and approved. In the meantime, rest assured that your loved ones remain safe and well-cared for by our very-own healthcare heroes at Loyalhanna Care Center.
As much as we wish our facility would have been spared the devastating effects of this pandemic, we are truly proud of our caregivers and support staff who carried all of us through. They say after the storm comes the rainbow, and we look forward to the rays of sunshine that will surely follow.
Up-to-Date Statistics
- Current positive cases in-house: 0
Universal Testing
On June 8, 2020, Dr. Rachel Levine, Pennsylvania’s Secretary of Health, issued an order for required testing of residents and staff in Skilled Nursing facilities. In response to this directive, baseline testing of residents and employees at Loyalhanna Care Center was completed on June 30th and July 1st. The specimens were collected by our administrative clinical staff and sent off to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Laboratories in Exton, PA for testing. Since then, we are pleased to report that were able to maintain our COVID-free status! Even though we have worked through eliminating the virus and now have evidenced-based testing to support the success of our efforts to maintain that status, we remain vigilant in the processes that have been put in place. We continue to monitor our residents for signs and symptoms of illness, including fever, cough, and other respiratory symptoms. Our staff also continues to undergo screenings and symptom monitoring before and after each shift in order to identify and remove potential threats of illness before they can spread to our residents. Should anyone become symptomatic, we will follow the next steps in our testing plan, which has been developed under the guidance of the Department of Health and other federal and state agencies.
Unfortunately, this threat remains very real, especially since there is still no available cure or vaccination to combat it. The future of testing, screening, visitation, and the general operation of nursing facilities remains to be seen; however, we strive to meet and exceed the expectations set forth by the agencies directing the fight against this pandemic. As that guidance changes, so will we. If you have any questions or concerns regarding our testing plan, results, or future procedures, please reach out to the Administrator or Director of Nursing.
State Infection Control Survey
Representatives from the Johnstown Field Office of the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Bureau of Facility Licensure and Certification within the Division of Nursing Care Facilities conducted an on-site COVID-19 Focused Emergency Preparedness Survey on June 24th and 25th. This in-depth review of the infection control practices throughout the facility resulted in the receipt of one (1) citation for an isolated instance of non-compliance with the employee screening process. While we hoped for a deficiency-free review, coming through a two-person, two-day focused survey with a single noted concern was a WIN in our book!
The results of this survey are available for review upon request.