APARTMENTS DINING EXPERIENCE – UPDATE – NOVEMBER 25, 2021

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APARTMENTS DINING ROOM UPDATE – NOVEMBER 25, 2021

PAVILION – Residents in the Pavilion will begin having meals in the dining room on Monday, November 29, 2021. This will begin one floor at a time. A memo will be distributed tomorrow to the residents with details.

TERRACE WEST – Residents in Terrace West will begin having meals in the Terrace West Bistro on Monday, November 29, 2021. This will begin one floor at a time. A memo will be distributed tomorrow to the residents with details.

PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE WITH DINING EXPERIENCE

The Community Enrichment team will be meeting next week with our Infection Control Lead to discuss how we can improve the dining experience in the apartments while maintaining safety for residents.

Factors that we will consider are:

  1. The percentage of each apartment building that has 3 doses of COVID vaccine.
  2. The percentage of unvaccinated residents in the apartment building.
  3. The prevalence of COVID in the community, particularly in the churches. COVID in our Apartments has been traced back to church events.
  4. The installation of air-scrubbers to mitigate the possibility of airborne transmission.
  5. The social needs of the residents and the risks residents are willing to take.
  6. Commitment of the residents to vigilance with layers of safety from COVID.
  7. Creative ways that we can bring groups of residents together – similar to a restaurant environment.

As you know, we saw in the Terrace East Outbreak how very quickly COVID can spread. It was clear to us and to Fraser Health that the dining rooms were high risk environments for the residents of the Apartments. We continue to grieve the loss of life that happened as a result of that COVID outbreak.

We are very cognizant of the staff resources required to manage an outbreak and keep the rest of the seniors who live in the apartment safe. We developed cohorted teams of staff, moving 4 staff full-time to cohort in Terrace West and then in Pavilion. In order to allocate these staff to one building, we had to hire coverage for the other work that they did previously. All of this takes logistics and management. The demands and the responsibilities are heavy for the leadership. We continue to feel the impact of our Manager of Community Enrichment resigning her position after working 28 straight days during the Terrace East outbreak.

Our team will meet with hopefulness and understanding of the desire that residents have to “go back to normal”. We share that desire.

Thank you for your patience as we carefully plan for safe and meaningful dining experiences for those who call Menno Apartments their home. We will continue to keep you informed about these decisions. We will send out a memo about this to residents tomorrow.

Please send any input you have to Leonard.Klassen@MennoPlace.ca (Life Enrichment Coordinator).

PAVILION FLU SHOT CLINIC – NOVEMBER 23

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Memo will be delivered on Monday, November 20

PAVILION FLU SHOT CLINIC – November 23

Dear Residents,

The flu shot will be available on Tuesday, November 23rd for all Pavilion residents who would like to have one.  We will come to your apartment suite to get you. The clinic will take place in the dining room.

These times are estimated:

  • 9:30am – 1st floor
  • 10 am – 2nd floor
  • 11 am – 3rd floor

Here’s what you need to do to get your flu shot:

  • Wear a short-sleeved shirt.
  • Have photo ID ready to show.
  • Wait in your apartment. Staff will come and get you when it’s time to come down to the dining room to get your shot.
  • We will start at 9:30am and expect the clinic to run throughout the day.
  • When you get to the clinic we’ll have a consent form ready for you to sign.

If you do not want to get a flu shot, just let the staff member know when they come to your door.

Thank you for being patient with us as we get these vaccinations done!

PAVILION RESIDENTS: OFF ENHANCED MONITORING! – November 20, 2021

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COVID UPDATE – November 20, 2021 – Pavilion OFF Enhanced Monitoring

We are pleased to announce that Pavilion has been declared OFF Enhanced Monitoring by Public Health.

Residents may return to normal activities, including having social vaccinated visitors, going out for activities and visiting with each other.

As always, our lives now have layers of safety to protect ourselves from getting COVID:

  1. Wear a mask in all common areas of Pavilion and anywhere in the public including when you go to church
  2. Follow Public Health Orders, including the specific orders for Fraser Valley East: CLICK TO READ
  3. Exercise caution when you are visiting with people outside of your immediate bubble – wear a mask, stay 6 feet apart, use hand sanitizer
  4. Hand hygiene – carry hand sanitizer with you and use it every time you touch a “common” area such as elevator buttons, hand railings, door knobs, grocery cart
  5. Social distance – we continue to use the 6 foot distance to protect ourselves from the unintended droplets that are imperceptible from others when they speak, etc.  – Remember that some people without symptoms may be able to spread virus. Stay at least 6 feet (about 2 arm lengths) from other people. Keeping distance from others is especially important for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick.

We will provide information to you about returning to the dining room next week.

If you are fully vaccinated PLUS have the booster shot do you need to practice layers of safety? Yes. This is a time to be cautious as the prevalence of COVID is high in our community. There are several churches in Abbotsford that unintentionally became a place of COVID spread. You can read about Clearbrook MB Church’s experience here – READ HERE

As an elderly person, your risks for severe illness with COVID-19 are higher. If you have other health issues, this compounds the risk for you. With vaccination and a medical mask covering nose and mouth (available in the foyer), you have effective layers of protection to keep you safe when you are among others.

Should you wash the medical masks and re-use them? No. These masks are intended for single-use. They are provided to you at no cost through Menno Place. It is more important to protect yourself than to save money. If you wash them, you reduce their effectiveness and increase your risk of contracting COVID.

Thanks for all you do to keep yourself and others safe!

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NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 2 (2 residents PAVILION | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = November 4, 2021

TERRACE EAST – FLU SHOT CLINIC ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2021

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Memo delivered to TE residents:

TERRACE EAST FLU SHOT CLINIC

Dear Residents,

The flu shot will be available on Thursday, November 18th for all Terrace East residents who would like to have one. The shots will be given in the dining room.

Here’s what you need to do to get your flu shot:

  • Wear a short-sleeved shirt.
  • Bring your photo ID with you.
  • Wait in your apartment. Staff will come and get you when it’s time to come down to the dining room to get your shot.
  • We will start at 9:30am and expect the clinic to run throughout the day.
  • When you get to the clinic we’ll have a consent form ready for you to sign.

If you do not want to get a flu shot, just let the staff member know when they come to your door.

Lunch will be served to all residents in their apartments on Thursday. Thank you for being patient with us as we get these vaccinations done!

November 15, 2021 – PAVILION (IL) COVID EXPOSURE – No new COVID positives

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COVID UPDATE – November 15, 2021 – Pavilion COVID exposure

NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 2 (2 residents PAVILION | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = November 4, 2021

Public Health had a meeting with the Medical Health Officer today to let us know that:

  1. Pavilion will continue on Enhanced Monitoring until Nov. 19th at midnight – this date will change if there are any new symptomatic or positive residents
  2. We will continue with enhanced cleaning, PPE audits, cohorting our staff to only Pavilion, 2x daily wellness checks and screening incoming visitors
  3. The dining room will be opened on a new schedule AFTER November 19th – details to be announced
  4. All residents in suites 201-214 are off droplet precautions! Isolation carts will be removed
  5. Social visits are allowed again for fully vaccinated visitors
  6. We do not need to do another point prevalence testing (PPT) for all residents and staff (YAY!)
  7. Our team will continue daily calls with Public Health to report the monitoring that we are doing for symptoms and the results of our audits

As we move forward through the winter season, we now have a much clearer picture of how a COVID outbreak or COVID Enhanced Cleaning impacts the lives of residents in the apartments. In this case, the first COVID positive in Pavilion was reported on October 22, 2021. This is a full month ago. Every life of every resident was impacted and all of the staff were pulled together to provide the required support. As you connect with your loved one, please emphasize the vigilance that is needed to protect their lives and the lives of everyone who shares their apartment building home. This includes mask wearing when they are with anyone who is not a VERY close and trusted person in their life; using hand sanitizer at every touch point like doors, elevator buttons and railings; avoiding situations where others are not practicing all the layers of protection (a church environment where people are unmasked); and practicing social distancing of 6 feet from others.

We are grateful that there has been no loss of life in this Pavilion COVID Exposure. We are grateful that COVID didn’t spread widely through the apartment building as it has in other settings. We are grateful for the dedicated staff who work tirelessly in a COVID exposure environment to protect those who live in the apartment building.

We thank you all for your support and cooperation. A month is a very long time to live with restrictions. We are grateful that we didn’t have greater transmission which would have escalated this exposure to an outbreak. An outbreak requires most, if not all, of the residents to be isolated for a minimum of 2 weeks. Some of the residents in Pavilion and Terrace West experienced this extended isolation and it is extremely difficult.

Thank you for all you are doing to help your loved one stay safe – and to the residents for the efforts they are making to avoid situations that could expose them to COVID.

Contact Dan Janzen at 604-851-1350 with any questions.

November 4, 2021 – PAVILION (IL) COVID EXPOSURE – New COVID positive =1 (T=2)

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COVID UPDATE – November 4, 2021 – Pavilion COVID exposure

NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 1

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 2 (2 residents PAVILION | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = November 4, 2021

We are sorry to announce that we have a new COVID positive in Pavilion. We await information on next steps from Public Health.

Exercise vigilance in your layers of protection – mask wearing over nose and mouth; checking for symptoms each day; using hand sanitizer frequently – after you touch a surface someone else may have touched (elevator button, railing, door handle); wash your hands with warm, soapy water frequently, get your 3rd booster shot.

What are COVID symptoms? Click here for list.

 

November 4, 2021 – TERRACE WEST (IL) OUTBREAK – DECLARED OVER!

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COVID UPDATE – November 4, 2021 – Terrace West Outbreak

From Public Health:

The outbreak of COVID-19 declared on Oct 14, 2021 at Menno Terrace West – IL in Abbotsford  is declared over TODAY, Nov 4, 2021

The onset of symptoms in the last confirmed COVID-19 case was Oct 24, 2021.

There have been no new cases identified during the outbreak monitoring period.

Emphasis on hygiene and monitoring continue.

Facility will continue to follow standard protocols for COVID-19 prevention.

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NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 5 (5 residents TW | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = October 25

PASSED AWAY = 1 resident (October 26)

November 2, 2021 – TERRACE WEST (IL) OUTBREAK – New COVID positive resident = 0 (T=5)

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COVID UPDATE – November 2, 2021 – Terrace West Outbreak

NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 5 (5 residents TW | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = October 25

PASSED AWAY = 1 resident (October 26)

All residents and staff in the PPT (point-prevalence testing) were tested for COVID-19 yesterday. We await results of these tests and hope that there are no new cases of COVID in the building. We are hopeful that the results will all be negative. In that case, we hope that we will enter a Step-Down phase of Outbreak that will allow more freedoms for those currently on isolation.

Residents must remain on isolation until the Medical Health Officer releases them. Residents who are not on isolation may leave the apartment building. Essential visitors inside the building and apartment suite ONLY.

Any resident who leaves the apartment building overnight may not return until the outbreak is declared over by the Medical Health Officer.

November 2, 2021 – PAVILION (IL) COVID EXPOSURE – New COVID positive =0 (T=1)

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COVID UPDATE – November 1, 2021 – Pavilion COVID exposure

NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 1 (1 resident PAVILION | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = October 22, 2021

Two additional residents were showing symptoms for COVID. These residents were tested and we await results of these tests in order for the Public Health Officer to inform us of next steps. Exercise vigilance in your layers of protection – mask wearing over nose and mouth; checking for symptoms each day; using hand sanitizer frequently – after you touch a surface someone else may have touched (elevator button, railing, door handle); wash your hands with warm, soapy water frequently, get your 3rd booster shot.

What are COVID symptoms? Click here for list.

 

October 29, 2021 – PAVILION (IL) COVID EXPOSURE – New COVID positive =0 (T=1)

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COVID UPDATE – October 29, 2021 – Pavilion COVID exposure

NEW COVID POSITIVE CASES = 0

TOTAL COVID POSITIVE CASES = 1 (1 resident PAVILION | 0 staff)

MOST RECENT COVID CASE = October 22, 2021

The Fraser Health Licensing audit returned with Moderate Risk level for the Pavilion (low, moderate and high categories). This means that we will put into place more signage, active screening at the entrance and continued vigilance with enhanced cleaning.

The two residents on isolation had negative COVID results for their test on Oct. 27th. We await information from Public Health on next steps as these residents continue to self-monitor. The entire building remains on Enhanced Monitoring. All residents who are on isolation report that they are doing well.

Meals continue to be delivered to the resident’s apartment suites. The laundry room is open. Maximum 3 people in the laundry room at a time. Wipe down all machines before using them. Wash your hands thoroughly.

The dining room is closed, lounges are closed and residents are not permitted to visit in each other’s apartment suites. Visitors must all be vaccinated fully.

Please communicate with your loved ones that they need to exercise caution in their activities: reducing the frequency of outings; reducing the number of people that they contact; wearing their mask over nose and mouth; staying 6 feet away from others; using hand sanitizer frequently and washing hands often.

Please report any symptomatic residents to Reception: 604.851.4004