- Good afternoon Fowler Family!
- COVID UPDATE:
- As of 2:00 pm October 21, 2020, Dallas County Health and Human Services reported 589 additional positive casesof COVID-19 in Dallas County for a cumulative total of 91,313 confirmed cases (PCR test), including 1,091 confirmed deaths. There are 66 additional probable cases (rapid antigen test)
- Only 1 of the newly reported cases is from a prior month [August]
- Dallas is seeing an uptick in cases
- The hospitals are reporting significant rise in admissions – if we continue this pace, we will be back to July levels
- Fowler Updates:
- I want to give you an update on our Worth Memory Care COVID Incident
- On Tuesday, I shared that a resident had gone to the hospital over the weekend and it was learned on Monday that the resident was COVID positive.
- That alerted us to test the remaining residents and staff in the Worth Neighborhood
- As of today, 6 residents and 3 teammates in Worth Memory Care neighborhood have been confirmed as COVID positive
- 3 additional residents are presumptive positive
- All 70 team members in the Pearl Nordan Care Center have been tested; results are pending on 3, the others are negative
- All residents in the Carroll Neighborhood [Skilled Nursing and Rehab] were tested and they are all negative
- All residents in Assisted Living in the Junius and Flora Neighborhoods have been tested and those results are pending – no one is exhibiting any symptoms
- Regarding our residents who have been confirmed positive:
- I shared on Tuesday that we were preparing our COVID Isolation Suite in the Pearl Norden Care Center and assessing our next steps for the care of those residents and the protection of others
- One of our options was to utilize our COVID Isolation Suite and staff it with our staff that would be dedicated to that area for the duration of care needed. This would require pulling staff from other areas to provide around the clock care
- Another option was to transfer all of our confirmed-positive residents to another skilled nursing community that has been certified by the county as a Designated COVID SNF
- Designated COVID SNFs are skilled nursing facilities who have already had COVID in their communities and have elected to admit individuals with COVID who do not need hospitalization. They have applied for this certification and have earned it based on their protocols and outcomes
- After much prayer and consideration, that is the option we chose
- Yesterday, the confirmed-COVID residents were transported to Christian Care Mesquite Campus
- Today, our 3 presumed positive residents will follow
- Not only is this an ideal choice for this particular incident, it was the recommendation of the Health Department. It is their preference that the confirmed positive cases be contained as much as possible in facilities that have fought and won the COVID battle
- I have no doubt that our team could do the work and do it well; they have been fighting an invisible enemy for 8 months
- Our concern was our ability to maintain the staffing levels needed for the duration to care not only for these residents, but for all the other residents in our care
- CCC has long been a collaborator with Fowler. We are like minded in our dementia care and we felt that this option was best for this particular incident
- We are in continuous contact with the staff at CCC – they are now an extension of our team as they will love and care for our residents until they return
- The team at CCC reported today that all the residents had adjusted well to their temporary environment and had a good night
- We will continue to monitor the remaining residents and staff in Worth and have a testing schedule in place for the duration
- The 3 teammates who have tested positive are all quarantining in their home; they will return to Fowler when they have had 2 negative COVID tests
- The original resident who tested positive in the hospital is still in the hospital and is resting comfortably
- How does this impact you?
- Love Your Neighbor Basics remains our top defense – AT ALL TIMES practice these simple lifesaving rules:
- Wear a mask
- Wash your hands frequently
- Sanitize hard surfaces
- Social distance
- I want to emphasize one more – monitor your own health – if you do not feel well, stay home, remain in your apartment and notify the management of your building
- Symptoms you need to be monitoring:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Sore throat
- Muscle aches
- Loss of taste or smell
- Nasal congestion or running nose
- GI symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain
- As you can see COVID presents in many different ways
- Many are similar to allergies. You know if you have a new symptom
- If you are experiencing one of these symptoms, isolate yourself immediately
- We implore our family members to be consistent in your symptom monitoring as well
- If you have been exposed to COVID, please stay home
- If you have a family member in your home that has COVID, stay home
- If you are quarantining with COVID, do not come to Fowler
- Team members, PNCC staff is restricted from all other buildings on campus including administration building
- Likewise, staff from JLC, FCA and Administration are restricted from going to PNCC
- Regarding Visitation
- Visitation in JLC and FCA will continue as scheduled – your personal decisions and health monitoring are key to that continuation
- Window visits will continue in PNCC
- We will also be rolling out our Essential Caregiver visits as planned
- Please continue to keep our residents, their families and our team in your prayers
All COVID Updates are posted on our website – www.fowlercommunities.org/covid19/
COVID Hotline: Phone: 214-515-7184 • Spanish Speaking Line: 214-515-1385
Email: Covid19info@fowlercommunities.org
COVID-19 Mental Health Support Line 24 hours a day, 7 days a week toll-free at 833-986-1919
