Dear Personal Care Employees:
It has been seven weeks since schools were officially closed and we started this COVID journey together. In the past seven weeks we have seen many changes in the ways in which we care for others and ourselves. Throughout these changes you have remained steadily committed to our mission and for that we are grateful.
The Department of Health in conjunction with the National Guard will be conducting community-wide testing in several facilities that we work in over the next few weeks. When widespread testing is conducted we expect that there will be asymptomatic cases of COVID that are discovered. Testing will be made available to any Personal Care Employee who wishes to be tested. Anyone who has been exposed to someone who is COVID positive will be tested immediately. To date we have had three Personal Care clients test positive for COVID, none of them are receiving care at this time.
Many of the facilities we work in plan to extend their current isolation practices through the middle of May. While this is hard for the clients that we serve, we support the recommendations that older adults continue to physically isolate as best they can. We ask that you continue to wear your mask while you are working, practice hand washing techniques and notify us if you are not feeling well. If your client has a sudden change in status, cough, or fever please call the office immediately. If you have been exposed to someone with COVID, traveled out of the state, or work in another facility please let us know.
As we are all facing additional stress and anxiety in our lives I would encourage you to all take some time for yourself to decompress. Taking a walk, listening to relaxing music, a warm bath, spending some time away from your phone or even baking your favorite cake can all be ways that we relax. Remember that we are all in this together!
If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions we welcome you to contact us.
Stay safe!
Danielle