August 13, 2021
Dear St.Amant Families,
There is a lot going on in Winnipeg this summer and we’re happy to hear about everyone we support taking advantage of the nice weather to get out and enjoy the opportunity to do the things we’ve missed: Bomber games, live music and just being with family and friends. With the opportunity to attend events, the St.Amant Foundation is again taking donations of event tickets for people we support, so if you’re a season ticket holder and can’t make a game or an event, just give Juliette at the Foundation a call and we’ll match your tickets with someone who will appreciate the experience.
This week we have one new case of Covid-19 in an employee who works in our Community Residential Program. The employee did not work during the period of communicability and no contact tracing was required. The employee is recovering well at home.
With the change of mask requirements within our province to mask recommendations, we have received various directions from various funders about what is expected from staff. We took some time to discuss mask and PPE use at our last Pandemic Committee Meeting and decided that masks will continue to be required in all areas while working (including outside), and that we are not changing the PPE requirements for direct service at this time.
There is also no change to PPE requirements for visitors in any area at this time.
We’ve heard from many people we support, family members and staff that they would prefer to be served, and work, with only people who are vaccinated. At this time, it is not mandatory to be vaccinated to work at St.Amant and we don’t have a mechanism to schedule people based on vaccination status. The best way for us to continue to keep everyone safe is to continue to require masks in all settings.
The 4th wave is an unknown, but as we watch what’s happening in other areas of the world and even other provinces, we are preparing in the best ways we can. Vaccination is proving to be key to keeping people safe through the 4th wave and potentially subsequent variants of concern. We strongly encourage everyone to get vaccinated.
Unknowns are hard and after a summer of hot beautiful weather, low Covid-19 case numbers, and a return to more normal activities, we know that continuing to keep safety precautions in place and thinking about another surge of cases feels exhausting. I want you to know that you’re not alone in feeling that way. I also want to assure you that we are coming out the other side of this pandemic. It will end, and we will return to normal activities, slowly. Thank you for your ongoing support, your thoughtful questions, your appreciation toward staff, and mostly your patience and kindness during this challenging time. Your actions are so meaningful to all of us, and in particular to our front-line staff.