Lancashire Hall COVID Communications

 We have learned that one administrative employee has tested positive after developing symptoms and getting tested in the community.  Our Infection Prevention RN conducted contact tracing and it was determined that  there were no residents that had been exposed.  The employee was in contact with staff members while in the facility however, the staff wore masks and eye protection during all interactions.  Under current PA DOH guidance, whenever there is a new "outbreak", the facility is required to test all staff and residents until the facility achieves 14 days with no new positives test results.  An "outbreak" is defined as "a new COVID-19 infection in any staff member or any nursing home onset COVID-19 infection in a resident."   The clinical team has conducted the weekly testing on the residents.   Since the positivity rate for Lancaster County remains high (>10%) at 12.7%, the staff continue to be tested twice a week.  The ...

 There are no new updates or positive test results to report again this week.  We continue with our twice weekly testing of employees due to the high case count of COVID-19 in Lancaster County.  Lancaster County's positivity rate has increased to 12.7% for the past week.  We continue to take all precautions including restricted visits except for compassionate care, window and virtual visits.  Staff are reminded to practice frequent hand hygiene, social distancing wearing of face masks and eye protection throughout the facility.  Because we know that community spread is the greatest threat to our residents, we also strongly  encourage staff to wear masks, practice frequent hand  hygiene and social distancing while in the community.  Residents are also reminded and encouraged to practice safe social distancing, frequent hand hygiene and mask wearing for their protection.  The PA Department of Health has created a mobile app which you can d...

We have completed this week's employee testing and we are both pleased and grateful to report that there are no positive COVID-19 test results.  We feel extremely fortunate given the increasing cases across the U.S., PA and Lancaster County.  Today's county positivity rate has increased from 9.2% to 11.1%.  For those on the family Zoom meeting yesterday, you will recall that we were anticipating that Lancaster would be in the high county positivity case count by next week.  As a result of this, we are now required to test staff twice weekly.  There is no new guidance on testing of asymptomatic residents however, we will evaluate and determine if residents who go out routinely for medical appointments should be tested.  Additionally, because we are in a high positivity county, we will be stopping all indoor visits and switching back to window and virtual visits.  Our Therapeutic Recreation staff has already contacted the families who have visits schedul...

We have completed weekly testing again this week and we are very pleased to report that there continue to be no new positive COVID-19 test results.  It is important to remind you that the numbers across the United States, Pennsylvania and Lancaster County continue to rise at an alarming rate.  Please take all the necessary precautions to protect yourself and your loved ones.  As a reminder, maintain a safe environment by screening those who visit your home by asking if they have had symptoms or if they have been exposed to anyone with symptoms so that you can take necessary steps to protect yourself.  Wear a mask, socially distance, wash your hands frequently and clean surfaces frequently.  These are all important steps to prevent the potential for exposure to COVID-19.  Your precaution in the community also helps to ensure the safety of our residents when you visit. We are continuing with indoor scheduled visits at this time however, as the county positivi...

Weekly employee testing was completed and we are happy to report that all test results were negative.  We will be testing again this week as the Lancaster County positivity remains above 5%.  In fact, this week, the rate has jumped from 5.8% last week to 6.5% as of today.  Please be safe out there.   The facility is working on plans for the upcoming Holiday.  This plan will be established according to the CMS core principles of COVID-19 infection prevention. Our Holidays will be much different this year due to the pandemic but we will do our best to ensure that you get to spend time with your loved one in the safest manner possible.  We will be sending out information as soon as we have our plan completed.   Please continue to contact Lindsey Black to schedule your visits. Have a nice weekend!

 We are pleased to report that we have continued to have no positive COVID-19  test results for residents or staff.  Our last positive employee test result was  on September 24th.  The last positive resident test result was five months ago.  The facility had been conducting monthly testing during the month of October in accordance with CMS guidance.  Our testing strategy depends on the COVID-19 positivity rating in the county where the facility is located. I mentioned in a previous post that a facility which resides in a county with a low positivity rating (<5%) are required to test monthly, facilities residing in counties with a medium positivity rating (5-10%) are required to test weekly and facilities residing in high positivity counties (>10%) are required to test twice a week.  On November 2nd, Lancaster County's positivity rating jumped from a 4.7% to 5.8%.  That percentage put us in the medium positivity level and we therefore be...