Dear Family and Friends,

As of today, we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our care center. Our care center continues to test staff monthly. We are following recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Currently, vaccines are being distributed to adults 65 and older, educators, school staff, child care workers, health care workers, and residents and staff of long-term care facilities. We have received many calls requesting information about vaccinations. If you qualify in one of the above categories, please check the state’s online vaccine locations map (https://mn.gov/covid19/vaccine/find-vaccine/locations/index.jsp) or contact your health care provider about appointment availability. Our staff and residents continue to have opportunities for on-site vaccinations through our pharmacy partnership. Our next clinic is on 2/24/2021.

Minnesota continues to see new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations as MN lessons the restrictions in public areas. The numbers of cases and attributable deaths are declining as vaccinations roll out. State and local health officials continue to stress social distancing, mask use, and frequent hand washing or sanitizing.

With vaccinations becoming more prevalent, and knowledge that vaccinations are providing a positive impact in reduction of active outbreaks; it is frustrating that use of PPE and visitation constraints must continue within our care centers. Until the CDC and MDH have supporting science to assure the spread of COVID-19 is reduced with vaccinations, we are required to maintain the same infection control protocol.

Looking for ways to help? We have a variety of positions available with flexible scheduling and on the job training. For more information or to apply, visit www.jobswithus.org.

Don’t forget to get your flu shot this season to help protect our community. Please follow our Facebook page (@Franciscan Health Center) or our website (www.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

As of today, we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our care center. Our care center continues to test staff weekly. We are following recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The CDC released a report that indicates a national average vaccination rate for care center residents of 77.8% and of care center staff, 37.5%. Minnesota is in a category with higher rates for both, with more than 80% of residents and more than 40% of staff. As of Wednesday of this week, 70,049 residents and staff of Minnesota’s long term care centers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. We are excited to announce we have conducted our second vaccine clinic giving many residents and staff their second dose of the Moderna vaccine! We will be hosting our 3^rd on 2/24/2021. As of today, 100% of residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 Vaccine and employees 85%.

This weekend we plan to celebrate Super Bowl Sunday. We want to remind our friends and family that may be participating in Super Bowl activities to please social distance, wear a mask, and wash or sanitize your hands often.

Looking for ways to help? We have a variety of positions available with flexible scheduling and on the job training. For more information or to apply, visit www.jobswithus.org.

Don’t forget to get your flu shot this season to help protect our community. Please follow our Facebook page (@Franciscan Health Center) or our website (www.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

As of today, we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our care center. Our care center continues to test staff weekly. We are following recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

We are currently open for indoor visits. For the safety of our residents and staff we ask that any visitors have a negative COVID test prior to their visit. If you would like to be tested during our routine testing, please reach out to (contact info).

This week, MDH health officials contacted a computerized random selection of Minnesotans aged 65 and up, who signed up to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Unfortunately, with only 11,700 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to give away, many on this list will not receive the vaccine this week. If you were not contacted on Wednesday, your name will remain on the list for the next round of vaccine distributions. For staff and residents at our care center our next vaccination date is on Wednesday February 24^th 2021.

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching and like previous holidays throughout the COVID Pandemic, must be celebrated cautiously. MDH and CDC have not changed guidance regarding residents leaving our care centers during the pandemic and do require residents to quarantine upon return. With any holiday this year, we have seen an increase of visits requested. Please remember to plan ahead and schedule your virtual visit or, if available, indoor visits, with Linda Fellman, Activities Director as soon as possible.

Looking for ways to help? We have a variety of positions available with flexible scheduling and on the job training. For more information or to apply, visit www.jobswithus.org.

Don’t forget to get your flu shot this season to help protect our community. Please follow our Facebook page (@Franciscan Health Center) or our website (www.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

As of today, we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our care center. Our care center continues to test staff weekly. Our care center is no longer in point prevalence testing and we have resumed communal dining, small group activities, the beauty shop has reopened and plan to resume indoor visits soon! We are following recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

This week, Minnesota is beginning a new COVID-19 vaccine pilot program. There will be nine vaccine sites that will serve persons 65 years of age and older as well as prek-12th grade educators, school staff, and child care workers. All appointments available for the nine sites were immediately booked. These sites will begin administering vaccines at the end of this week.

We are thrilled to see the enthusiasm and determination of our community to be vaccinated and help protect our most vulnerable from the COVID-19 virus. The CDC has released data proving that this Pandemic has disproportionately affected seniors. From May 2020 to August 2020, 78% of COVID-19 deaths were aged 65 and older. As a reminder, our care center will be hosting 3 separate clinics for vaccinations for our staff and residents. Any residents or staff members who were unable to attend the first clinic are encouraged to attend the 2nd and 3rd clinics for their free vaccinations. Our next clinic is on January 27th.

Looking for ways to help? We have a variety of positions available with flexible scheduling and on the job training. For more information or to apply, visit www.jobswithus.org.

Don’t forget to get your flu shot this season to help protect our community. Please follow our Facebook page (@Franciscan Health Center) or our website (www.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

As of today, we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our care center. Our care center continues to test staff weekly. Our next test date is January 4^th. We are following recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

We are excited to announce that our care center is scheduled to receive the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine and will host 3 clinics for vaccinating our residents and staff! Our first clinic was on December 30^th, 2020.  The second dose of the vaccine will be administered 4 weeks after the first round and the third will be administered 4 weeks after the second. Protection from vaccine is not immediate; vaccine is a 2-dose series and will take 1 to 2 weeks following the second dose to be considered fully vaccinated. Vaccine efficacy is 94-95%. This data was assessed with two doses being administered. It is very important to get both doses to ensure good protection.

When someone receives the vaccine they may experience side effects up to three days after vaccination. These side effects include injection site pain, tenderness and swelling of the lymph nodes in the same arm as the injection, swelling (hardness), and redness. General side effects include fatigue, headache, muscle pain, joint pain, chills, nausea, and low grade fever.

Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is one of the best ways to protect yourself and everyone around you, particularly those who are at increased risk for severe illness. Wearing masks and social distancing help reduce your chance of being exposed to the virus or spreading it to others, but these measures are not enough.  Getting the vaccination will not only protect you from being infected; it will help us reduce visitation restrictions in the future.    

While the vaccine is a significant factor in our fight against the virus, it is just the beginning to reopening our care centers. We continue to use the county positivity rate to measure the spread of the virus in our local communities and follow the recommendations from MDH and CDC on reopening. Currently our county positivity will allow us to open for indoor visits on date. We are asking that all visitors have a negative COVID test prior to their scheduled visit.

Looking for ways to help? We have a variety of positions available with flexible scheduling and on the job training. For more information or to apply, visit www.jobswithus.org.

Don’t forget to get your flu shot this season to help protect our community. Please follow our Facebook page (@Franciscan Health Center) or our website (www.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

Franciscan Health Center tested all staff on 11/20/2020. One staff member tested positive for COVID-19 during this round of testing. We tested all residents and employees again on Monday, November 23rd. Our staff who test positive are asked to self-quarantine at home. Positive staff will not be allowed to return to work until they recover from the virus; 10 days following positive test and 72 hours from last fever without using medication.

We want to remind you that we are following all recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Our staff are being screened for COVID symptoms before the start of each shift and tested twice weekly. Staff are equipped with surgical masks, eye protection and gowns when providing care. Our residents have their full vitals checked in the morning and screened and monitored throughout the day.

We appreciate all the support, prayers, and offers of help that we’ve received. Thank you again for being partners with us in fighting the COVID-19 virus. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Brittany Loosbrock, Administrator, at 952-239-6638 if you have any questions or concerns.

Dear Family and Friends,

We recently learned that the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and the federal Medicare agency (CMS) are advising against residents leaving their care center for holiday visits. As we continue to fight against COVID-19, we ask that you not take your loved ones out this Thanksgiving.

By not taking your loved one out for a holiday visit, you will help us in protecting the health of everyone who lives and works here. One of the best things that you can do for your family this holiday season is to not gather in groups and keep everyone safe by wearing a facemask when you do.

We know just how special the holiday season can be and spending time with family is what adds meaning to our celebrations.  However, we need your help to protect our residents, our staff, and yourself during this pandemic’s risky time by limiting our contact with the broader community.  As Governor Walz told us the other night, the COVID-19 surge is at a dangerous level in Minnesota.

This past year has been a challenge like no other and we deeply appreciate the sacrifices that you and your family have already made during these past months. The hope of a COVID-19 vaccine is promising, but until that time we all need to use extra caution to slow the spread of this highly contagious disease.

If a resident does choose to go to a holiday gathering outside of our care center, the resident will need to quarantine in his or her room for 14-days after returning as a necessary precaution. Even when being very careful and following all of the guidelines, the risk of being infected when being out in the general public is high.

Our staff is committed to keeping you connected during the holiday seasons. We have a variety of activities planned that will engage our residents and are doing all we can to facilitate alternative means of communication between you and your loved one. If you have any gifts or cards you would like to give to your loved one or wish to schedule a virtual visit, please contact Linda Fellman at 218-302-6994.

We know that this news may cause concern or that you may have questions about what we are doing to keep everyone safe and healthy. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me at 952-239-6638. 

Sincerely,

Brittany Loosbrock, LNHA

Administrator

November 13, 2020

Dear Family and Friends of Franciscan Health Center,

Although not unexpected, today we have a staff member who has tested positive for COVID-19.  This event triggers a planned process of quarantining residents in their rooms and using personal protective equipment (PPE) including face masks, eye protection, gowns, and gloves, to aggressively minimize transmission to others. Our top priority is to keep everyone safe and healthy. We are collaborating with our Medical Director and the Minnesota Department of Health and are following all recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to ensure we are taking all appropriate steps at this time.

With the confirmed positive case of COVID-19 in our care center, we will move forward with entire site testing for both residents and staff. We understand that this decision may result in increased confirmed cases, but the results will allow us to accurately isolate the virus and prevent the spread in our community. We believe this is the best way to protect residents, staff and our community and track the path of the virus. If you have verbally consented to your loved one receiving the COVID-19 test and have a consent form attached, please complete this form and return in the self-addressed stamped envelope enclosed.

In the event we have any residents test positive, we would activate our COVID unit. The unit is segregated from the rest of our community. The designated staff that care for residents in this unit remain within the area and do not have physical contact with other non-segregated residents. Any staff who test positive will be self-quarantined at home and will not be allowed to return to work until they recover from the virus; 10 days following positive test and 72 hours from last fever without using medication. Our staff are equipped with specific training and PPE to continue to provide safe, quality care, services and support to the residents of our community.

As we’ve shared several times, in early March, we initiated proactive infection control practices, screening procedures and visitor restrictions that will help us manage this situation as effectively as possible and protect the safety and health of all who live and work here. We will continue to update you on any news, emerging issues, or additional changes in our operations via Bright Arrow, email, website, and our Facebook page.

We know that this news may concern you or that you may have questions about what we are doing to keep everyone safe and healthy. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me at (952) 239-6638. 

Brittany Loosbrock

Administrator