A Message for our Families
(Updated February 13, 2023)
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Information
During these unprecedented times, please know that there is nothing more important to us than the health and safety of your loved ones in our care.
We are doing everything in our control to provide our residents a safe and comfortable environment. We have implemented daily cleanings, are monitoring residents at every shift, and our staff is engaged in aggressive infection prevention strategies.
We continue to follow all guidance from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and state Departments of Public Health.
Please contact us with any questions or concerns. The safety of our residents and staff are of the utmost importance to us.
Visitation
We are pleased to welcome our families and friends back into our centers after a long pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Weather permitting, outside visitation remains an option, as well as our always available virtual visitation through tablet devices.
Please see our reminders about visitation:
- Connecticut and Massachusetts visitors are required to self-screen prior to entry of the building.
- Rhode Island visitors you must complete a screening questionnaire at reception desk prior to visiting with your loved one.
- Visitors and residents (as they are able to do so) must wear a face mask for the duration of their visit. If there is no roommate in the room with your loved one the mask can be removed during your visit in their room.
- Residents and staff will be tested in the event of exposure.
- Visitation can continue even for those who are COVID + as long as the visitors wear the proper personal protective equipment (PPE).
Vaccination
To protect all residents, staff, and others in our communities from the known and substantial risks of COVID-19, Athena Health Care Systems and its managed centers have strongly advocated and educated our staff, residents and their families to become vaccinated. We also strongly advocate for the vaccination of all health care personnel. COVID-19 vaccines protect health care personnel when working both in health care facilities and in the community. They provide strong protection against workers unintentionally carrying the disease to work and spreading it to patients and co-workers.
As required by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), all staff are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have an approved religious exemption on file as explained below:
Two types of employee exemptions can be implemented: medical and religious exemptions. As of October, our facilities must ensure that all personnel (including non-direct care staff) are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 unless:
- Administration is medically contraindicated, which means administration of COVID-19 vaccine is likely to be detrimental to the individual’s health, or
- The individual objects to vaccination based on a sincerely held religious belief and the individual is able to perform their essential job functions with a reasonable accommodation that is not an undue burden on the nursing home.
Employees may not otherwise decline the vaccine.
As a reminder – if your loved one is not yet vaccinated, please contact their center to schedule a vaccine. Booster shots are currently being administered to our residents.
Health Departments
Check with your local authority for more information
Ongoing Safety
We take cleanliness and ensuring a safe environment for our residents very seriously, and our policies and the practices at our centers reflect that. Every center is frequently and thoroughly cleaned by professional staff. We have aggressive infection prevention strategies which are exercised by all of our staff. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, our infection prevention efforts are at an even more heightened level. We have stepped up our typical cleaning and disinfecting schedule that would be in place during the regular flu season, requiring more frequent surface cleaning on high contact areas and other strategies.
We continue to follow the guidance of the state regulators and have taken additional steps to protect our residents. Please consult the CDC Coronavirus website, or your state’s Department of Public Health. These are the authorities with the most up-to-date information.
We understand this is a difficult time for our residents and their families, but there is no greater priority for us than their health and safety of our residents and staff. We are doing everything in our control to provide our residents a safe and comfortable environment.
Our staff is committed to making sure families are able to connect with their loved one in our homes. Please contact us and we will make sure you are able to speak with your family member in our care.
Media Inquiries:
Savannah Ragali
Director of Marketing & Communications
Athena Health Care Systems
SRagali@AthenaHealthCare.com / 860-751-3937