California’s skilled nursing facilities closed to visitors in March, but their residents still have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic because many are elderly, frail and live in close proximity.
authorities recently issued guidance for visits to resume, but few are happening as infection rates surge in many communities. Facilities are being cautious after many suffered severe outbreaks earlier in the pandemic.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some — especially older adults and people with existingFamilies have relied on phone and video calls to stay in touch with loved ones. In some cases, they can chat through windows at the facilities. But these visits can be challenging for residents with impaired vision or hearing or cognitive difficulties.
Tony Chicotel, staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said the state's guidance hasn't made much difference yet. “Having some kind of safe visit really is important,” Walters said, but added, “just because one entity says, ‘Hey, this is OK,’ we still have to be responsive to our other agencies that guide us.”
Larry Yabroff, 78, has been able to visit his wife, Mary, who has Alzheimer’s, under these conditions. She couldn’t grasp video chats and became agitated during window visits, he said. So he wears a mask, gets tested regularly for COVID-19 and largely stays home except for walks — and the handful of times he has gone to see his wife.
Page said the facility wants to offer outdoor visits to more residents, but it won't without approval from city health officials.Tim Carlson, compliance officer at the Los Angeles Jewish Home, said the facility is planning to hold outdoor visits once county health officials approve. It is also looking at ways to cope with the at-times sweltering Southern California heat, possibly by creating a tiny module with two compartments to allow for cooler — and separate — air.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Strict Rules Apply, But Visitors Will Be Allowed Back In New York Nursing HomesThe state issued new guidelines on Friday that require a facility to be virus-free for at least 28 days, limit the number of visitors and require masks and temperature monitoring for visitors.
Read more »
Experts fear for elderly amid virus surge in state with most nursing homesExperts fear with uptick in cases in Texas, coronavirus will invade state's 1,218 nursing homes.
Read more »
Experts fear for elderly amid virus surge in state with most nursing homesThe senior citizens who populate Texas nursing homes were not jammed into bars or packed onto beaches on Memorial Day, but officials there now fear that coronavirus that began spreading among younger people over the past month is imperiling the lives of the state’s most vulnerable. It was a grim but
Read more »
California could release up to 8,000 inmates early because of coronavirusAs many as 8,000 California inmates could be eligible for early release by the end of August under a plan to slow the spread of the coronavirus in the state's prison system, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation says.
Read more »
Union vote highlights coronavirus crisis for California's home day care providersAfter close to two decades of organizing and legislative struggle, tens of thousands of babysitters, early childhood educators and home day care proprietors will vote this month on whether to unionize, a move many hope will reinvigorate California's ailing child care system in a moment of…
Read more »
Florida woman took dishwashing job so she could visit husband with Alzheimer's during pandemicMary Daniel visited her husband Steve every day at his Florida memory care center until they stopped allowing visitors in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Read more »