Stay safe!
The safety and health of our residents and staff is paramount during this COVID-19 crisis. Many state governors are mandating ‘stay at home’ orders to help slow the spread of the virus. We know prevention is key, and the Westland House team is doing everything they can to create a safe environment at our community. Part of achieving that goal is dependent on our valued caregivers, culinary teams, housekeeping staff and maintenance team members – all of whom are essential to the safety and security of our residents and building.
The Westland House employee family – those who are entrusted with the care of our residents – is exempt from all ‘stay at home orders’. Our staff provide medically-necessary care, and they are permitted to leave their homes to fulfill their calling to care for others.
We assure you our community will remain fully operational during this situation. If you have any specific questions for us, please reach out to your Executive Director for further clarification.
Thank you for your understanding and patience during this ever-changing situation. We are committed to keeping you up-to-date with any further pertinent information.
Stay safe!
The Westland House
COVID-19 Virus Prevention
The Westland House has been monitoring the COVID-19 virus situation since it was first diagnosed in the United States earlier this year.
Keeping our residents and employees healthy and safe is our top priority. At this time, our primary focus is on prevention. Due to an abundance of caution, we are limiting visitors and guests to our communities until further notice. Currently, we are only allowing immediate family members (for visits that are medically necessary, or for residents who are at end-of-life on Hospice), essential care providers and emergency personnel into our community, and only after being screened. We have also suspended all outings and group visits, with the exception of health care related visits. We will be evaluating this policy on a weekly basis.
Our community is following the recommendations of the CDC on prevention steps, including following strict handwashing procedures, and in some circumstances, wearing gowns and gloves when interacting with residents who are sick. We are also enhancing our screening protocols, which involves finding out if family members, caregivers, other health care personnel or essential vendors have symptoms, or have recently traveled to CDC-issued Level 2 and Level 3 countries.
We are staying up-to-date with the CDC recommendations as they are communicated. In addition, our team is in close contact with the local and state health departments and we are following their guidance.
To date, we have also done the following:
Residents and Families:
- Distributed letters to residents/families around measures we are/have been taking to combat the illness, as well as safety precautions we are implementing at our community.
- Posted CDC recommended literature at our communities.
- Posted signage at our community entrance limiting visitors to immediate family members (for visits that are medically necessary, or for residents on Hospice), essential care providers and emergency personnel.
- Implemented screening for all visitors and staff before entering the building.
- Conducting on-going assessments to make sure we have no residents who are symptomatic.
Employees:
- All employees are required to wear face masks at all times.
- Screening staff prior to, and at the end of, every shift.
- Initiated additional trainings and in-services to front line staff on preventive measures (e.g. regular hand washing, coughing into a tissue) and precautions (e.g. regularly cleaning common area surfaces).
- Monitoring staff for symptoms.
- Enhanced our cleaning and sanitation procedures and protocols related to COVID-19.
Regulatory Authorities:
- Participating regularly in national health organization webinars and conference calls regarding COVID-19.
- Monitoring the CDC website for daily updates.
- Partnering with third-party, on-site health care providers and on-site physicians for prevention strategies and protocols.