Good Afternoon –

I am pleased to share that PV test results from Tuesday’s testing (all staff and residents) have returned negative. This means that PV is no longer in outbreak/PPT testing. Now, they will be in surveillance testing the same as MOM and RenVilla. MOM and RenVilla’s surveillance tests also all returned negative this week with no changes.

Surveillance testing is testing unvaccinated staff at a frequency level that is directed by the county transmission rate. In addition, RHS continues to test all staff and residents who display a Covid symptom or have had high risk exposure. Currently, we are testing unvaccinated staff twice a week due to Renville County’s high transmission level. The county transmission levels can be found at the link below. In addition to this information, you can find Renville County’s 7-day Metrics including Cases (38), % Positivity (11.09%), Deaths (<10), % Eligible Population Fully Vaccinated (54.87%).

https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view

This is a slight change in practice that is based on updated CMS guidance that came out this month. Before, we were using county positivity rates to determine testing frequency as previously directed. However, this is also high, so we would be testing unvaccinated staff twice a week regardless of what data we were directed to follow.

Residents really enjoy having visitors, and we encourage friends and family to come spend time with their loved ones. There are practices that we are required by CMS and MDH to follow. Also, we want to be sure we are doing our best to keep residents as safe as we can from transmission. Please be sure to screen at the door, wear a mask, wash your hands/use hand sanitizer, and limit your visits only to the resident’s room or apartment. Please do not congregate in public areas.

Thank you for all of your continued efforts with this. I understand that this has been difficult, and we are all anxious for the day that things will be more back to normal, but please be gracious with our staff. The staffing shortage that the state and country is experiencing has effected everyone in the healthcare sector. Let’s be sure to appreciate the excellent staff that we have, and if we can make their lives a little easier by keeping our masks above our noses in the building, then I think we should do that.

If you know someone who works in healthcare, I urge you to send him/her a text, letter, or voicemail expressing the appreciation you have for their work. There isn’t one person in this field that hasn’t been having a difficult time. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions.

Thank you,

Casie Knoshal

Administrator, LNHA, LALD

Renville Health Services

Phone: (320) 329-4373

Fax: (320) 329-3678