December 31st, 2020
Morris Health Services tested staff for COVID-19 at West Wind Village and Skyview Senior Living this week. You will be notified if there are any additional positive cases. Morris Health Services continues to follow 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).
- West Wind Village –There was one staff member positive for COVID-19. WWV will continue point prevalence testing. Indoor visits restricted until further notice. WWV will start essential caregiver visits. All essential visits must be scheduled and essential visitors will be required to have a negative COVID test. Please call Elizabeth at 320-589-4924 for more information.
- Skyview Senior Living – There was one contracted staff member who tested positive for COVID-19. Skyview Plaza will initiate point prevalence testing and will restrict indoor visits until further notice. Skyview Court may host indoor visits. All indoor visits must be scheduled ahead of time and visitors will be required to have a negative COVID test prior to their visit. Visits can we scheduled with Sophie at 320-589-4582.
We are excited to announce that our West Wind Village has received the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine and will host 3 clinics for vaccinating our residents and staff! Our first clinic was on December 30th, 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. We are working with Horizon Public Health and will have Skyview Senior Living vaccination dates will be sent out soon.
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.
Please follow our Facebook page (@Morris Health Services & @Skyview Senior Living) or our website (www.mhs.sfhs.org) for all COVID updates and information on what is happening inside our care center. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Paula at 320-589-7900, if you have any questions or concerns.