NEWS
Update from The Pines – May 14
[The Pines shared the following information with News of Davidson. It was previously shared with residents, staff, and families.]
We are eager to update you today on several fronts.
First, we continue to send positive thoughts and prayers to the five Nursing Wing residents who have COVID-19 and who are continuing to receive care: three remain in the specialized COVID-19 unit at Huntersville Oaks; one is expected to be transferred soon to Huntersville Oaks and one remains in a local hospital. As we shared previously, we completed initial diagnostic testing on all Health Center residents, and we are actively pursuing the best practice for ongoing surveillance testing of these residents.
We also want to share with you that one non-Health Center staff member tested positive for the virus. That individual is self-isolating and convalescing at home.
No additional cases of the virus among Health Center staff have been reported to us. The four staff members who earlier tested positive remain at home convalescing in self-isolation.
We do want to reassure you that no staff member who has tested positive will return to active work status until they meet the detailed “return-to-work” requirements set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The Pines is also vigorously pursuing our options for diagnostic testing of all non-Health Center staff. Testing is an important element in our ongoing fight against COVID-19.
We are fully focused on protecting our residents and staff. Maintaining a rigorous program of testing, contact tracing and quarantining/isolating is critical in keeping this virulent disease from further impacting The Pines community. It may sometimes feel that we are overly vigilant during this hyper-focused period, but we hope you know it is for the very best reason – everyone’s protection. Please help us in our effort to control the spread of COVID-19!
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Observing Community Safety Guidelines
We regret the need to re-state this, but based on observations by deeply concerned fellow residents and staff: please heed the following safety guidelines. There are some individuals who are engaging in unsafe behaviors. We urge these residents to please:
- Stand 6 ft away (or more) from other individuals.
- Do not meet in groups of more than 10 individuals (even if seated 6 ft apart from each other) in a gazebo or lounge. Meetings of 6 individuals or fewer is preferable.
- Please wear masks – especially if you are speaking across a fence (6 ft. away) with a non-Pines person. And it is even more important for you that they wear a mask!
- DO NOT pass food (birthday cake!) or bags to each other through the fence at Hickory Crest, dog park or other places. This is happening to the distress of your neighbors.
- DO NOT congregate if there are others safely visiting with their family or friends near a fence or comparable area.
- Visit for a short time only – do not bring chairs and sit for an extended visit.Take these important steps to help keep everyone in our community safe from COVID-19. A resident recently noted, “We are all making sacrifices to keep each other safe.” Please ask yourself: is an unsafe behavior worth not only my health, but possibly the wellbeing and the life of someone else in my community?
Important Reminder: COVID-19 Symptoms
If you develop any COVID -19 symptoms such as fever (=/> 99.6 F), cough, or shortness of breath, please call your primary care provider AND call our Wellness Clinic or our Charge Nurse.
Please also do the same if you came into contact with somebody in the past 14 days who exhibited such symptoms, has been identified by a healthcare provider as a “presumptive positive,” or has tested positive for COVID-19.
Additional COVID-19 symptoms can include: chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell. In addition to these symptoms, please seek immediate medical attention by pressing your emergency call button or pulling an alert cord and calling 9-1-1 if you or another resident experience: trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to arouse, bluish lips or face.