11/13/2020
Dear Maristhill Residents and Families,
The facility has tested all of our staff on November 9th and 11th per Department of Public Health guidance for those individuals that had previously tested negative. Our staff continues to show no signs or symptoms of COVID-19. We will continue to test all of our staff every two weeks as directed by CMS and DPH. In addition, all the residents of Maristhill as of the date of this letter show no signs or symptoms of COVID-19. Our medical staff continues to monitor each resident’s health status for the COVID-19 virus.
As you may be aware if you are watching the news the trend of positive cases of COVID-19 is moving upwards at a rapid rate. The risk of spreading the COVID 19 virus is very real and with the holidays upon us we are at greater risk to spread the virus. I am requesting that each family think through the risk that visitations may possibly bring to your family member and the Maristhill community as a whole. The efforts that are being made to control the spread of the virus by the various communities that we live in had not been as successful as we had all hoped. Until a vaccine is developed and distributed to our residents they are still at risk to the COVID 19 virus. At this time we are still having in-person visits, but it may be a better idea for all to utilize the IPad for face to face visits. The in-person visits by families to the facility increases the possibility that COVID 19 could be brought back into the facility. Several families have stated that they are COVID 19 negative or they have not been in contact with anyone. Unfortunately, we cannot accept those verbal statements as confirmations to one’s COVID 19 status. Your loved one lives in a communal setting where many individuals have health conditions that put them at greater risk than you living at home. Please, keep this in mind when you plan to visit and together we will keep Maristhill as safe as we can for all.
And, to make it even more concerning for all of us is that we are entering the Flu season as well. I am pleased to inform you that we are providing the Flu vaccine to both our residents and staff. Nearly 100 % of our residents and staff have received the flu vaccine. Excellent news!
We ask that our residents and staff do all that they can to support our facility and our community by following the recommendations set forth by the CDC and DPH:
• Social Distancing/staying home if possible and wear a facemask in public;
• Washing Hands for 20 seconds with soap and water or use a hand sanitizer;
• Self-isolating if showing any signs or symptoms of COVID-19; and
• Seek medical assistance as necessary
We wish to remind you that we have updated our Maristhill website and we hope that this updated version will be helpful for the families to keep in contact with the activities and news from Maristhill. Also, we still utilize Facetime and Skype for visits with families and residents.
Thank you all for your support. If you have any questions, please let me know.
Regards,
James Tracy
James Tracy,
President
