Visiting Nursing Homes during COVID-19

There ARE many states allowing nursing home visitation! If your state has approved visitation guidelines, each long term care facility should have specific guidelines that must be followed.

Recently I spoke to Briana, my local nursing home Transitional Care Coordinator. Brian stressed the need for families to work closely with the facility admissions coordinator and or Executive Director to understand the visitation guidelines. Her facility is required to be 14 days with no new resident or team member COVID 19 cases. This guideline varies from state to state and at can be based on interpretation. Visitors to Briana’s facility must complete infection control training that is provided twice a week and follows guidelines specific to her facility. Her facility is also able to provide indoor and outdoor visits protected from the elements that must be made by appointment and during scheduled hours. This, my friends is just one small example of a facility’s interpretation of the state guidelines.

I was most excited to hear about the impact made by a woman by the name of Mary Daniel. Mary took a job as a dishwasher in the assisted living facility where her husband was a resident to afford her the opportunity to spend time with him two evenings a week. In early August, Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis invited Mary to join his state task force that was assigned to explore reopening long-term care facilities to visitors. Mary persuaded the task force to move forward to allow people to enter the facility if they qualified as an “Essential Caregiver” or as known in some states, a “Compassionate Caregiver”.

The term “Essential Caregiver” is one person from each family who has an established relationship with the resident prior to the pandemic that provides companionship and is able to assist with daily activities such as eating, bathing and grooming. Once determined the “Essential Caregiver” is permitted a scheduled visit following the same protocol as staff, wearing masks getting screened and maintaining distance from other staff and residents.

The “Essential Caregiver” program is somewhat different from the guidelines for general visitation that has been put in place by 30 or more states that have initiated long term care facility reopening.

Mary Daniel not only became an activist for visitation, she also created a Facebook group called Caregivers for Compromise that has well over 8500 members in all 50 states. The sites are not state specific and offers valuable assistance to those that are having difficulty meeting the requirements of the long term care facility. Mary writes that she understands the dangers of the virus but with education and specific guidelines visitors can be taught to do what staff do what staff do every day going into work.

Long-term care facility visitation is an ongoing balance of the risk for the most vulnerable and the concern for safety. Visitation is an amazing and necessary benefit not only for the resident but also for family members. The Facebook stories and pictures are heartwarming and encouraging, but at times concerning and tragic. The bottom line:  Isolation also kills.  It is time to SAFELY put an end to isolation.