NEW ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING ON-SITE VISITATIONS AT OUR CENTER

September 23, 2022

 

Visitation Guidelines

Visitation is critical to the well-being of residents, families, and staff. Visitation guidelines have been updated to reflect the revision of QSO-20-39NH 9/23/2022: Nursing Home Visitation-COVID-19 (cms.gov) Visitation should be available at all times following the Core Principles of Infection Prevention: Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations to Prevent SARS-CoV-2 Spread in Nursing Homes | CDC

 

General visitation and essential care givers are allowed visitation at all times including under the following circumstances: End of life, residents who have lived with family and struggling with the change of environment or lack of in-person support needs, the resident is making one or more major medical decisions, experiencing emotional distress, grieving the loss of a loved one, needs cueing or encouragement to eat or drink previously provided by family member, or a resident who used to talk and interact with others is seldom speaking.

 

Visitation will be available at all times. There are no limits to the frequency or length of the visits, the number of visitors, and will not require any advanced scheduling. Visitation will continue regardless of the Center’s outbreak status or a residents’ transmission-based precautions.

 

Visitation can be conducted through different means based on a center’s structure and residents’ needs, such as in resident rooms, dedicated visitation spaces, outdoors, and for circumstances beyond compassionate care situations. Regardless of how visits are conducted, there are certain core principles and best practices that reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission: Visitors will receive education related to the core principles of infection Prevention and appropriate mask wearing, hand hygiene, and social distancing.

 

Core Principles of COVID-19 Infection Prevention

• Visitors who have a positive viral test for COVID-19, symptoms of COVID-19, or currently meet the criteria for quarantine should not enter the center. Consider delaying visitation when you do not feel well.
• Hand hygiene – alcohol-based hand rub is preferred.
• We will request that you wear a mask when the community transmission level is HIGH, this information will be posted in visible areas in the center. You may remove your mask when in the resident room or visitation area.
• Social distancing of at least six feet between visitors and other residents and staff when possible. Residents and visitors may have consensual physical contact.
• Instructional signage throughout the center and proper visitor education on COVID-19 signs and symptoms, infection control precautions, and other applicable center practices (mask wearing, specified entrances and exits, routes to designated areas, hand hygiene).
• Cleaning and disinfection of high frequency touched surfaces in the center often, and visitation areas after each visit.
• Appropriate staff use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
• Effective cohorting of residents (separate areas dedicated to COVID-19 care).
• Resident and staff testing as required: https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh-revised.pdf 9/23/22.

 

Indoor Visitation
Although there is no limit on the number of visitors that a resident can have at one time, visits should be conducted in a manner that adheres to the core principles of COVID-19 infection prevention and does not increase risk to other residents. Centers should ensure that physical distancing can still be maintained during peak times of visitation (e.g., mealtime, after business hours, etc.). Also, centers should avoid large gatherings (e.g., parties, events) where large numbers of visitors are in the same space at the same time and physical distancing cannot be maintained.

 

• During indoor visitation, center should limit visitor movement in the center: visitors should go directly to resident room or visitation area.
• While not recommended, residents who are on transmission-based precautions (TBP) or quarantine can still receive visitors. In these cases, visits should occur in the resident’s room and the resident should wear a well-fitting facemask (if tolerated). Before visiting residents, who are on TBP or quarantine, visitors should be made aware of the potential risk of visiting and precautions necessary to visit the resident. Visitors should adhere to the core principles of infection prevention. Centers may offer well-fitting facemasks or other appropriate PPE, if available; however, centers are not required to provide PPE for visitors.

 

Indoor Visitation during an Outbreak Investigation
An outbreak investigation is initiated when a new center onset of COVID-19 occurs (a new COVID-19 positive case among residents or staff). Center will adhere to CMS regulation and guidelines for COVID-19 testing, to include testing of individuals with symptoms, and outbreak testing either center-wide testing, or testing based on contact tracing.  https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh-revised.pdf 9/23/2022

 

• While it is safer for visitors not to enter the center during an outbreak investigation, visitors must still be allowed in the center. Visitors should be made aware of the potential risk of visiting during an outbreak investigation and adhere to the core principles of infection prevention. If residents or their representative would like to have a visit during an outbreak investigation, they should wear face coverings or masks during visits, and visits should ideally occur in the resident’s room. Centers may contact their local health authorities for guidance or direction on how to structure their visitation to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission during an outbreak investigation.

 

Outdoor Visitation

While taking a person-centered approach and adhering to the core principles of COVID-19 infection prevention, Outdoor visits generally pose a lower risk of transmission due to increased space and airflow. For outdoor visits, centers should create accessible and safe outdoor spaces for visitation, such as in courtyards, patios, or parking lots, including the use of tents, if available. However, weather considerations (e.g., inclement weather, excessively hot or cold temperatures, poor air quality) or an individual resident’s health status (e.g., medical condition(s), COVID-19 status, quarantine status) may hinder outdoor visits. When conducting outdoor visitation, all appropriate infection control and prevention practices should be followed.

 

Visitor Testing and Vaccination
The center encourages and educates visitors about vaccination. Testing and vaccination are not required as a condition of visitation.

 

Responsibility: The Administrator is responsible for ensuring staff adhere to the guidelines.