October 20, 2020 at 12:30 pm
Dear Village at Belmar Community,
We wanted to provide an update to all of you regarding our community Covid status. We have identified a confirmed positive associate that was and is asymptomatic and was tested as a part of our contact tracing from last week. They are home and resting comfortably.
[Read more…] about COVID-19 Update – October 20, 2020 at 12:30 pm
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October 14, 2020 at 4:30 pm
Dear Village at Belmar Community,
We wanted to provide an update to all of you regarding our community status. As we mentioned in our letter on the 12th, we had a few pending tests that we were waiting for the results on. Unfortunately, one of those pending tests came back positive for Covid-19.
The confirmed positive associate was and is asymptomatic and was tested as a part of our contact tracing from last week. They are home and resting comfortably.
Based on the nature of this associate’s job duties in assisted living, we will be conducting another round of testing for all associates and for assisted living residents over the next few days. Once we have results from the upcoming round of testing, we will send another update letter.
Unfortunately, this will delay the re-opening of the assisted living dining room that was planned for today, and also suspend outdoor visitation for assisted living as well as small group activities. Outdoor visits for memory care will continue. This will also delay the beginning of Indoor Visitation for a minimum of 14 days, as we cannot gain clearance from Jefferson County Health to begin Indoor Visitation until 14 days after the date of our last positive test result.
If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.
Sincerely,
Tom & Susie Finley – Founder and Principal
October 12th, 2020 at 3:30 pm
Dear Village at Belmar Community,
We wanted to provide an update to all of you regarding our community status. We are very pleased to report that all of the testing that was conducted for residents and associates has come back negative, including the second associate referenced in our last update letter who had pending results. We have a few resident tests who are still awaiting results and hope to have these results later today or tomorrow.
Based on what we now know, we are pleased to announce that small group activities will open back up today, outdoor visitation will resume tomorrow, October 13th and the dining room will reopen Wednesday, October 14th.
Additionally, we are working towards the goal of beginning indoor visitation next week and will provide an update letter later this week outlining this program. Please be advised that the guidelines for indoor visitation are state mandated and are fairly strict. They requirements also involve family members obtaining a negative Covid-19 test result, and the visit must take place within 48 hours of when the test swab occurred. Therefore, you will need to get tested at a site with a quick turnaround time. For example, if you schedule a visit for a Wednesday morning, you must have a negative test result and the test must have been conducted mid-day the previous Monday or after. Rapid and PCR (lab) tests will be accepted for the required documentation. We have learned that these tests with quick turnaround are difficult to obtain and can be quite costly. We are hoping to obtain supplies in the coming weeks where we will be able to administer these tests for indoor visits for an additional charge (at our cost, but much less than what is being charged in the open market today).
We will also plan to continue outdoor visits for both Assisted Living and Memory Care for those who want to bundle up when the weather turns, and we will be purchasing some heat lamps to make these visits more comfortable. Outdoor visits do not require a negative Covid-19 test nor the other requirements listed in the paragraph above, and will continue as they have operated for the last few months.
Once we have the remaining pending results, we will put out a communication letter outlining to plans for indoor visitation. Please understand that both indoor and outdoor visitation may not be a permanent relaxation of Covid-19 precautions. The State of Colorado continues to monitor infection rates across the state and may further relax or restrict visitation policies in the future. Additionally, we will be required to conduct bi-weekly testing on all residents and associates and if a positive resident or associate is identified, indoor and possibly outdoor visitation will be halted for a required period of time. We will keep you up to date as circumstances change.
If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.
Sincerely,
Tom & Susie Finley – Founder and Principal
October 6, 2020 at 5:30 pm
Dear Village at Belmar Community,
We wanted to provide an update to all of you regarding our community status. Unfortunately, as we have been gearing up with testing for Indoor Visitation, we have identified one positive associate and we have another symptomatic associate whose testing is pending.
The confirmed positive associate had a positive family member identified so they quarantined for 14 days. They came back to work last Thursday, 10/1, after the 14-day period, and participated in our weekly associate testing. Based on results received this morning, this associate is showing as positive. Based on consultation with our Medical Consultant as well as CDC guidance, we believe that this may be a case of a “persistent positive” where her test is still reflecting a positive result but she may not be contagious. We are, however, treating this as a positive case.
The second associate developed symptoms on Sunday while they were off work. They did not come in as scheduled yesterday or today, and were administered a rapid test yesterday. The rapid test indicated a negative result although based on her symptoms and per the advice of her primary care physician, she was administered a PCR test (Covid test sent to a laboratory for processing) as the PCR tests are much more reliable. We are treating this associate as if they are positive and have begun our contact tracing exercise. We should know the result of this PCR test in the next few days.
Based on the nature of both of these associate’s job duties, their interaction are broad and will involve testing of all associates as well as testing of the Assisted Living residents. Once we have results from this round of testing, we will send another update letter. If you participated in an Assisted Living outdoor visit in the last two weeks, you may have had a possible limited exposure and should monitor for any signs or symptoms and seek medical advice if you are not feeling well.
Unfortunately, this will delay the beginning of Indoor Visitation for a minimum of 14 days, as we cannot gain clearance from Jefferson County Health to begin Indoor Visitation until 14 days after the date of our last positive test result. Additionally, until we have results back next week from our contact tracing, we are being advised by both Jefferson County and our Medical Consultant to temporarily suspend Assisted Living dining room service, small group activities and outdoor visitation. Our goal is to re-open all of these amenities next week as soon as we are able, providing that no other positive cases are identified, and all test results come back negative. If you have any further questions, please reach out to Village at Belmar’s Executive Director, Rebecca Norris, at (303) 351-5455.
Sincerely,
Tom Finley and Susie Finley
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