Good evening, Village at Marymount Family, Friends, and Staff. This is Sue Nall the Executive Director.
On January 3, we had 7 additional COVID positive cases on campus. We tested all residents and staff. Please say an extra prayer that we start to see a downturn in cases.
Our COVID update since March 2020: Villa St. Joseph has 35 Active Staff and Resident Cases. We have a total of 152 resident and staff cases. Memory Care Assisted Living at Villa St Joseph has 7 active Resident or Staff cases and a cumulative total of 9 cases. Marymount Place has 6 Active Resident or Staff cases — and a cumulative total of 29 resident/staff cases.
Judging from my first two calls this month, dealing with the highly contagious Omicron variant is not how we wanted to start the New Year. But I’m resolved to keep you updated with the very latest in our building so you can understand what we’re doing to keep our residents and staff as safe and healthy as possible. We did a number of room changes to keep our residents as safe as we can.
Regarding Visitations:
Villa St. Joseph resident families … we ask only two people visit per day. We do not want visitors coming and going. Once here, please stay for the duration of the visit. You must sign up for your visit by calling our receptionist at 216-332-1100. We ask that the resident’s responsible party communicate our visiting policy to family and friends. We will continue to offer compassion care visits.
We are discouraging residents from leaving the facility for visits. Marymount Place families can contact either Chris Meinke or Maribeth Hejlik to discuss. Villa St. Joseph families can contact me, Dan Storey, or Peggy Jakabcic to discuss residents leaving VSJ.
Daily Mass is on hold until further notice. Sister Mary Alice is re-evaluating what forms of Mass or prayer services we can safely offer. Residents gathering for activities will be kept 6 feet apart from each other. Masks will be worn as needed.
Some good news on the vaccine front for youngsters. The FDA today authorized Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for booster shots in 12- to 15-year-olds in the U.S. Because of the Omicron variant, many area schools are closing, or bracing for disruptions as students return to school after the holiday break. Making children in these age groups eligible for the booster is a great thing.
Let’s all do what we know will work: get vaccinated and get the booster as soon as it’s available to you. Continue your due diligence with mask-wearing, hand-washing, and social distancing when around others. These steps are our best defense to curb the Omicron spread. Health experts are hoping for an Omicron peak by mid-January.
Let’s remain vigilant in this latest battle of the COVID war. Thank you!