Dear Residents and Families of The Cardinal,
Approximately one year ago today, life at The Cardinal drastically changed as our state, nation, and the world began reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic. We have been reflecting on all that our community has gone through over the course of this challenging year and we are so fortunate to have such an incredible group of residents and associates who supported us throughout it all. From sheltering in place, ceasing all in-person dining and wellness programs, frequent changes in protocol to adjust to rapidly changing CDC guidelines, COVID-19 testing, and finally, COVID-19 vaccination clinics, this year has been a roller-coaster for us all. We are grateful to have over 99% of our residents and 67% of our associates fully vaccinated within a year of our “shut-down.”
Today, as we pause to reflect and remember all those we have lost around the country and world over the past year to this pandemic, we feel so blessed to have had minimal cases and lives lost due to this virus at The Cardinal. We hope with vaccination efforts and continued safety protocols, our bubble of safety will remain in place as we move forward with our “new normal” as we begin to re-open.
We are excited to announce that we have scheduled 3 additional COVID-19 vaccine clinics at The Cardinal in April, May, and June for any new residents and Cardinal associates. These clinics will be hosted by our Long-Term care pharmacy, Blue Ridge Pharmacy. Blue Ridge has received an allotment of the Moderna vaccine from the State that is allocated specifically for residents and associates of Long-Term Care facilities. We hope to be able to include essential caregivers, visitors, and volunteers in vaccine clinics soon and are diligently working to make that accessible here at the community. We will keep you updated on our efforts to include others in a clinic when we are able.
We will continue with COVID-19 surveillance testing for the foreseeable future to maintain our bubble of safety at The Cardinal. This testing will help us identify any possible risk or exposure sooner and allow us to manage accordingly. Even though most of us are fully vaccinated, it is possible any of us can still test positive for COVID-19 and be a carrier to others. We can safely reopen and move forward by continuing to test weekly, follow our COVID protocols, and practicing the 3 W’s; wear your mask, wash your hands frequently, and watch for social distancing.
Independent Living residents will need to stop by the Art Studio on Wednesdays between 8:00am – 3:00pm for pool testing. The Art Studio testing clinic will be closed for lunch between 1:00pm – 1:30pm. Please plan accordingly.
Private Duty and essential caregivers will be tested on Tuesdays or Thursdays in the Art Studio between 9:00am – 3:30pm. Family members and visitors will continue to test on Mondays between 9:00am – 3:30pm. If an IL family member or caregiver cannot make it on these days, they may leave a saliva sample at the front desk on Tuesday or Wednesday by 4:00pm.
Resident Satisfaction Survey results are in and these results were shared with the Board of Directors at their monthly meeting this past Monday. Community Management Team Members will be sharing department specific results with the Resident Advisory Committees at their next monthly meeting and will focus on creating an action plan to implement your suggestions and feedback. We received some excellent feedback during this survey process and we truly appreciate your time and commitment to helping us make The Cardinal an exceptional and luxurious community for you to call home.
Fully vaccinated visitors are now permitted to visit IL residents in their apartments without having to get tested for COVID-19. Vaccinated IL visitors must present their vaccine record card when signing in at the front desk every time they visit. Unvaccinated IL visitors may visit residents in their apartments with a negative COVID test result within 48 hours of their scheduled visit. Proof of negative test results must be presented to the CSR when signing in at the front desk. Any unvaccinated visitor who was not able to get tested may schedule an outdoor visit with their loved one.
Thank you to everyone who came out and celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with us on Wednesday. We had such an amazing turnout for this event, and we have heard so many positive comments from residents about how much they enjoyed the food, band, and dancers. Thank you to the Wellness and Dining teams for hosting such an amazing event!
Dining Services is eagerly awaiting April 5th when we officially re-open Bleu for in-person dining for the first time in over a year. A letter will be coming out from Dining Services early next week to review and explain the reservation and dining process. Please stay tuned for more information. We realize many residents have been requesting a ticket this month with their meal deliveries so they can check the status of their declining balance. We have been experiencing technological difficulties with our system that have prevented us from being able to print tickets. Our dining team is working with IT to resolve this issue as soon as possible. We thank you for your patience as we resolve this issue.
A new Cardinal Community Road Map will be updated and distributed next week. This road map is meant to be a guide for residents as we begin to reopen dining and wellness programs over the next several weeks. We hope this will be an easy, quick reference guide for everyone.
As always, the love for our residents and our commitment to their health and safety remains the primary force behind the decisions being made and actions being taken here at the community as we transition into our “new normal” post vaccination. We would like to share a video message from Kisco’s President and CEO, Andy Kohlberg. Please visit the link below for this special message.
We appreciate your continued support and compliance with our COVID-19 protocols to keep our residents and associates as safe and healthy as possible. Delinda Eubanks, Learning and Development Director, is Manager on Duty this weekend and will be available to assist you if needed. We hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Sincerely,
Tom Ford, Executive Director
Mary Casey, Assistant Executive Director