April 22, 2020
Hello,
Your family members are doing well, and even though they are missing your regular visits, they are enjoying the virtual visits very much. The school staff are continuing to provide additional programming to support those who are school aged. The RIs are busy with creative programming and support alongside the programming that Andrew mentioned to you in last weeks’ updates as well.
We have a couple of people we support in H&TS who are under the weather and have been tested for respiratory issues, including COVID-19. Aside from the 3 tests that we are awaiting results, all people supported and staff have tested negative, within Health & Transition Services and throughout St.Amant.
Sarah Mankelow continues to represent H&TS on the Long Term Care conference call, which occurs every morning. We are continuing to follow the updates and directives provided by Shared Health and Public Health.
As you know, staff who are supporting your family members are wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) as required depending on their role. It is very different to have staff who are providing direct care, wearing PPE. We wanted to share information that has been developed by our Speech Language Pathologists, that explains PPE and how to stay safe during this pandemic with symbols and pictures that your family members may understand. This is just one page of the story:
This information is being distributed and shared with your family members. Thank you to Clinical Services and the SLPs, especially, Julianne Panthei, for developing this great resource.
The nicer weather is coming….stay tuned for an exciting new possibility that is being developed…
We wish you all well and will be in touch again soon.
Be well.
Joanne van Dyck, M.Sc.
Senior Manager, Health & Transition Services