Quarantine is used to keep someone who might have been exposed to COVID-19 away from others. Quarantine helps prevent spread of disease that can occur before a person knows they are sick or if they are infected with the virus without feeling symptoms.
People in quarantine should stay home, separate themselves from others, monitor their health, and follow directions from their state or local health department.
When to Quarantine?
People who have been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19—excluding people who have had COVID-19 within the past 3 months.
People who have tested positive for COVID-19 do not need to quarantine or get tested again for up to 3 months as long as they do not develop symptoms again.
People who develop symptoms again within 3 months of their first bout of COVID-19 may need to be tested again if there is no other cause identified for their symptoms.
What counts as close contact?
• You were within 6 feet of someone who has COVID-19 for a total of 15 minutes or more • You provided care at home to someone who is sick with COVID-19 • You had direct physical contact with the person (hugged or kissed them) • You shared eating or drinking utensils • They sneezed, coughed, or somehow got respiratory droplets on you
Bernie McGuinness is the Chief Executive Officer at Majestic Care. The business specializes in community-based skilled nursing throughout Indiana and Ohio, including short-term rehabilitation, long-term care, and memory care. Bernie has been CEO since May 2018.
With more than 20 years of experience in senior healthcare management, Bernie understands the inherent stresses of the modern day healthcare professional. It’s his primary motivation for fostering what he calls a “culture first, people first” organization. He constantly focuses on developing the emotional ownership of his care team members, who are the critical first points of contact for the communities served by his organization.
Bernie has condensed his vast professional management knowledge into a strategy he describes as “The Five S’s.” He developed the system to better empower his employees to take big ideas and turn them into daily strategies for sustainable and prolonged growth.
Truth You Can Act On – The Five S’s:
Shine: First impressions make incredible impacts. Continued impressions create expectations. What does your physical work environment say about your culture? Set a high priority on fostering a clean and inspiring environment to demonstrate the value of your employees.
Smile: Turnover is high in many industries, including healthcare. Don’t overlook or undervalue the basic need of all employees: to feel welcomed and appreciated. A warm greeting manifests a winning culture of people-first.
Start Strong: Start each and every day out strongly. Promote the importance of employees arriving and starting their tasks on time. Start every meeting exactly when scheduled. These daily acknowledgments of respect fuel a culture of success.
Swagger: A confident employee shouldn’t be a random anomaly. Confidence stems from a deep understanding of not only internal products but also dynamics within your industry. Strive for swagger by providing your employees with tools to be informed and engaged.
Show Off: It’s easier for management to take pride in what they do, as they tend to see the bigger picture of how all of the moving parts come together. Foster this sense of pride and ownership within your workforce by promoting employees at all levels to share their success stories.
Making the 5 S’s Part of Your Culture
In order to sustain this philosophy, it’s important that management and leadership teams make the 5 S’s part of the everyday.
Bernie says “You have to define culture from Day One…The 5 S’s can be part of orientation, and you can even define it in the interview process. From day one – Repeat that, walk it, reinforce it.”
Of all the things we strive for at Majestic Care, nothing is more important to us than making sure each of our residents knows they are a unique human being who is cared for. That’s why we created the Magic Moments Program designed to provide an individualized plan of care for every person who calls our communities home.
At Majestic Care, ensuring residents are cared for in a safe and healthy environment is our greatest responsibility. Our team is proud to lead the way by delivering an industry-defining standard of long-term care cleanliness. We follow a scientific approach, using rigorous measures and our industry’s best products, while closely monitoring recommendations from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over the coming weeks, we will be highlighting these extensive efforts including:
Weekly COVID-19 Testing: All Care Team Members are tested at a minimum of every week.
Sign-In Kiosks and Temperature Monitoring: We utilize a digital system to screen guests and Care Team Members for symptoms of acute respiratory illness (e.g., fever, cough, difficulty breathing) before entering a Majestic Care Community.
Personal Protective Equipment: Care Team Members and residents have access to masks (surgical, N95), gloves, gowns, face shields, and hand sanitizer. Care Team Members are required to wear a mask at all times.
Recycled Air Ionizer: Air Ionizers are installed directly into air ducts, producing positive and negative ions that neutralize harmful pollutants and odors in our buildings. It purifies the air by ____percent.
Shields for Check-in and Nurse Stations: Plexiglass Shields at reception and nurses stations provide a physical barrier to reduce exposure and cross-contamination.
Electrostatic Sprayers: Sprayers provide an uniform and wraparound layer of germ-killing power, providing maximum efficiency disinfecting surfaces.
Deep-Clean Sanitization: Sanitizing lowers the number of germs on surfaces or objects to a safe level.
Daily Communications with Families: Our automated system keeps families and loved ones informed on COVID19 cases.
Thank you Care Team Members for all your hard work!
If you have fever, cough, loss of taste or smell or certain other symptoms, you might have COVID-19. If you think you might have COVID-19 or think you may have been near someone who has COVID-19, contact a healthcare provider for medical advice. Learn more at https://bit.ly/2IV3uRh or watch the video below.
When choosing to go out in public or visit a loved one at higher risk, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends we pay close attention to our symptoms. For those of us with seasonal allergies, understanding symptoms can present a challenge!
Seasonal allergies triggered by airborne pollen can lead to seasonal allergic rhinitis, which affects the nose and sinuses, and seasonal allergic conjunctivitis, which affects the eyes. Your sniffles and sneezes may seem like symptoms of COVID-19.
While COVID-19 and seasonal allergies share many symptoms, there are some key differences between the two.
For example, COVID-19 can cause fever, which is not a common symptom of seasonal allergies. The image below compares symptoms caused by allergies and COVID-19.
*Seasonal allergies do not usually cause shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, unless a person has a respiratory condition such as asthma that can be triggered by exposure to pollen.
This is not a complete list of all possible symptoms of COVID-19 or seasonal allergies. Symptoms vary from person to person and range from mild to severe. You can have symptoms of both COVID-19 and seasonal allergies at the same time.
Covid-19 has been found to spread mainly from person to person via respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing face masks to help slow the spread of COVID-19 when combined with every day preventive actions and social distancing in public settings.
Here are some guidelines on how to properly wear and take off a mask.
WEAR YOUR MASK CORRECTLY
Wash your hands before putting on your mask
Put it over your nose and mouth and secure it under your chin
Try to fit it snugly against the sides of your face
Make sure you can breathe easily
Do not place a mask on a child younger than 2
USE A MASK TO HELP PROTECT OTHERS
Wear a mask to help protect others in case you’re infected but don’t have symptoms
Keep the mask on your face the entire time you’re in public
Don’t put the mask around your neck or up on your forehead
Don’t touch the mask, and, if you do, clean your hands
FOLLOW EVERYDAY HEALTH HABITS
Stay at least 6 feet away from others
Avoid contact with people who are sick
Wash your hands often, with soap and water, for at least
20 seconds each time
Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available
TAKE OFF YOUR MASK CAREFULLY WHEN YOU’RE HOME
Untie the strings behind your head or stretch the ear loops
Michael arrived at Saint Anthony after experiencing a fractured femur from a fall. He needed to relearn how to perform transfers, use the restroom, and dress himself while not putting weight on one of his legs at all. He was persistent with his strengthening program and did his best to follow weight restrictions even though it was a challenge at times. After a few months, Michael was visiting with his doctor and let out a shout of excitement as he was cleared to put weight on both his legs again! Michael began to complete more rigorous exercises, with focus on balance and stability, and has made a full recovery and a safe return home! Great job Michael!
If you are traveling, help stop the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses by following these steps.
Congratulations to Victoria Collier, RNA as she celebrates 20 years of service this month at our Majestic Care of Columbus community!
“I love taking care of all of my Residents, they are like family. I have been through eight takeovers and I feel this one is the ticket because Majestic Care has shown that they care about their staff as well as their residents.”
Thank you Care Team Members for all your hard work!
