Work Underway to Modify Visitor Restrictions

Posted on June 16, 2020 by Jodi Boyne

As Minnesota starts to see a downward trend in the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19, there is increased pressure from families and loved ones to re-open congregate care settings to visitors and restart communal dining, programming and other activities. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) advises that people should not let their guard down, and we know we must remain vigilant as elders in our settings continue to be at a greater risk than the rest of this population.   

We believe the early implementation of visitor restrictions, vigorous screening, enhanced infection control and more wide-spread testing have played key roles in helping mitigate the spread of the virus. We also recognize the troubling impact that the required social isolation is having on residents and families.

The safety and health of our residents and staff has guided our work throughout the pandemic. We feel keenly the impact of social isolation on our residents’ wellbeing. We believe the risk of COVID-19 transmission in long-term setting and the need for visits with families and friends can be appropriately balanced.

We have been working collaboratively with MDH and other stakeholders on guidance to modify some restrictions, while continuing to provide care in a safe and responsible way. To date, this collaborative work has resulted in guidance on safely re-opening beauty shops in our settings and providing for window visits.

We are now in the final stages of completing guidance for safe outdoor visits that will be based on CDC, CMS and MDH guidelines. In addition, work has begun with MDH on developing guidance for visitation in buildings, group activities and socialization, communal dining and other services. Our goal in this work is to balance resident and staff safety with independence and socialization, as well as to ensure provider flexibility in resuming, restarting and renewing operations.

Look for an update on this work next week. LeadingAge Minnesota is developing the COVID-19 Road Ahead: Restart & Resume Field Guide that will include this MDH guidance on visitation when finalized as well as tools, resources and messaging to help you plan, implement and communicate this next phase in your COVID-19 response.