Over the past 18+ months of caring for seniors during the pandemic, Sophia Kilby, Pleasant View’s director of nursing, and her team have done incredible work to care for our residents.
Now, as we turn the corner and head into 2022, our nursing team is focused on keeping residents safe and healthy this winter and during the cold months ahead.
“This winter, we’re focused on infection control, education, and prevention to help keep our residents safe from COVID-19,” Sophia said.
Sophia and her nursing staff are working just as hard now as they were at the start of the pandemic to care for our residents. She and the team have put several measures into place to ensure residents stay healthy.
Educating Our Community with the Latest Health and Safety Information
Sophia and her nursing staff are constantly learning more about COVID-19 and mitigating the spread of the virus from data set forth by the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The health guidance she receives from both departments is used to inform her team’s approach to combatting COVID at Pleasant View.
The nursing team also welcomed a consultant from the PA Department of Health to share the latest best practices and COVID prevention policies specific to mitigation within health facilities across the state.
“By working directly with both agencies, we’re able to continuously educate ourselves and our residents about COVID-19 prevention methods,” Sophia said. “These partnerships are helping us learn new ways to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in our facility; insights we’ll use to keep our residents safe as winter hits,” Sophia said.
Proactive Intervention is at the Core of Our COVID Safety Strategy
Pleasant View is focused on helping residents stay healthy by decreasing the likelihood of the virus entering our health care facility. All staff members, residents, and visitors entering Pleasant View Communities’ skilled nursing facility are screened for COVID-19 symptoms, including temperature checks.
“Infection prevention saves lives,” Sophia said. “As we head into the cold winter months, my team and I are being proactive. We’re not waiting around for our residents to potentially contract COVID. We’re working to make sure they don’t get sick and, if they do, that we take the right health measures to reduce the severity of the virus.”
Pleasant View is taking measures to prevent the spread of COVID throughout the rest of our community, as well. The nursing team has held multiple free seasonal flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinics and will continue to provide these services for residents and staff throughout the winter.
“For our community’s senior population, access to health resources–including vaccinations–is always a variable we have to consider,” Sophia said. “Offering free vaccine clinics on campus is another opportunity to protect the Pleasant View community without the hassle of transportation and scheduling for those who wish to receive these immunizations.”
This winter, residents will continue to see signs throughout Pleasant View’s health care center facility reminding them to wear a mask in public areas, how to properly wear a mask, how to properly wash their hands, and alerting them to our occupancy limits. Pleasant View has also placed hand sanitizing stations throughout the facility and outside every resident room. Staff members are told not to come to work if they develop symptoms or are in contact with someone who tested positive.
“For our intervention measures to be fully effective, we need participation on all levels; from our staff, residents, and their families,” Sophia said.
We’re Making it Easier for Residents and Families to Stay Healthy and Connected
Many families have questions about visitation this winter. Our ability to offer visitation to our residents can be affected by the local county positivity rate as well as the current number of COVID-19 cases in our facility.
If visitation rules change, families will be contacted, and our website will be updated. Friends and family members are also encouraged to keep up to date with our efforts by visiting our COVID-19 Updates page and completing the sign-up form at the bottom of the page to have these updates delivered to your email.
We welcome you and your loved ones to visit Pleasant View Communities to discover everything that our vibrant, active community has to offer. We’ll take you on a tour and show you the beauty and joy of carefree living with access to high-quality health care right on campus. Contact us to learn more and schedule a tour.
