We regret to inform you that as of Wednesday November 3, 2021, we have had a fully vaccinated staff person test positive for COVID-19. After learning of the positive test, all staff and residents were tested for COVID-19 and were negative.
As per the Ulster County Department of Health (UCDOH), we have been instructed to do the following:
Suspend all visitations and out-trips for residents and families through Sunday 11/7/21.
Suspend all medical in office (out-trips) visits unless medically emergent.
Test staff and residents on Saturday 11/6/21 and again on Monday 11/8/21.
** If on Monday 11/8/2021 there are no positive COVID-19 test results, then we may resume our visitations, out trips and medical appointments.
At Mountain Valley Manor (MVM) we understand the inconvenience of not being able to visit with or take your loved ones out. Our main goal is to continue to provide a safe living and visitation environment for all our residents and their families. We appreciate your understanding and continued cooperation with us during this unprecedented time while we strive to achieve that goal.
We all hope to be back to normal on Monday! If you have any questions or concerns please call us at 845-331-1254
-Thank you
Mother’s Day 2021
With Mother’s Day fast approaching, we would like to take a moment to thank you all once again for your patience and understanding regarding our regulations at Mountain Valley Manor Adult Care Home (MVM) during the continued Covid-19 global pandemic. Recently we have had some movement towards loosening of regulations and restrictions for our residents; however at this time we are still officially closed to indoor visitations.
In response to these continued restrictions, we have implemented a new beta program that we are currently testing which allows residents to leave MVM for non medical reasons such as Mother’s Day or other important social events with their families. All requests for trips must be submitted through our portal for visiting and all requests have to be approved in advance off the date.
At this time we are respectfully suggesting the following guidelines:
- All on campus visits, virtual visits and out trips MUST be made through our appointment making website (www.mountain-valley-manor.appointlet.com) and confirmed with an email confirmation. An online form will be sent to your email and it will need to be filled out in full prior to Sunday or the visit / out trip will not take place. This is a requirement of New York State Department of Health( NYS DOH).
- Out trips can be scheduled between 9 am and 2 pm for proper staffing purposes. This explicitly means residents are leaving MVM no earlier than 9 am and must be returned by 2 pm.
- The recommended maximum out trip time is 3 hours. (example – you pick up mom at 10 am you will have her back to MVM by 1 pm).
- If you are dining out, please use outdoor seating. Dining at home is preferred.
- If there are any individuals who will be around your loved ones that are not vaccinated or not fully vaccinated everyone must wear a mask. This includes all children of any age. (**fully vaccinated is defined as receiving both doses of vaccines and two weeks have passed since the last dose of vaccine**).
- Residents who are leaving MVM must be transported by a fully vaccinated individual and they must wear masks while in the vehicle.
- Returning MVM residents will be required to change their clothing and wash their hands and face upon return from their out trip, and if time allows they will be fully bathed/washed as well.
- Any gifts sent that you plan on sending for Mothers Day should be dropped off at least a day in advance and clearly labelled for their intended recipient. This allows us enough time to ensure proper sanitation and distribution to our residents.
- No visitors will be allowed inside of MVM at any time on Mother’s Day. This includes the use of our bathroom, or for any type of visitation regardless of the visitor’s vaccination status. Please plan accordingly.
- Visits to the MVM campus will continue to remain outside with social distancing and the use of proper facemasks regardless of the visitor’s vaccination status.
- Residents will be granted no more than 2 visits on Mother’s Day. Please speak to your other family members to arrange visitation together.
- Any person visiting over the age of 10 will be considered a single visitor and will fall under the 2 person visiting maximum.
- Visits are currently scheduled for 30 minutes but maybe shortened in order to accommodate more appointments. Please watch your email, our facebook page or our website for further updates as needed.
If you have any questions or concerns please contact the administration during normal business hours.
If there are no appointments available for visitation, please contact Jennifer before 3pm on Friday. Any requests for visitations after this time will be subject to availability and can not be guaranteed. Any requests for out trips will need to be confirmed prior to this as well.
The CDC, CMS, DOH and You
This week there has been a lot of updated information released from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the New York Governmental offices and other organizations, regarding our continued fight against COVID-19 global pandemic.
We wanted to take an opportunity to discuss how this new information affects Mountain Valley Manor Adult Care Home’s (MVM’s) regulations and our ability to continue to effectively protect our residents and staff.
The CDC, while it is a Federal Government Organization,- is not able to set enforceable policies or regulations. All of their Covid-19 information is considered recommendations or guidance.
There is also an organizational oversight group called the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS sets regulatory oversight for nursing homes only. It is a federal agency and is often considered the gold standard for nursing home regulations. However, they do not have any authority for any other level of senior care.
MVM is overseen and regulated directly by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH). It is our understanding that they review CDC recommendations and CMS regulations while working with the NYS governor’s office and local health departments to set the regulations for assisted living homes in New York.
With the current influx of information being reported in the media, we thought that it would be helpful for you to understand how this information relates to us at MVM and your loved one’s care.
Regulations have changed frequently over the last year and often quickly. Currently regulations are loosening up and we are trying to be as responsive to these changes for our residents and their families. However, sometimes information has been conflicting across the different agencies. Just because the CDC says masks aren’t necessary in outdoor spaces with two vaccinated persons or CMS allows nursing homes to increase visitation into their facilities, it does not mean that MVM is able to as well. MVM is a licensed Adult Care Home and has a different set of regulations to follow. Additionally, there are various types of assisted living homes licensed by New York State which have more or less restrictions based upon their level of NYS assisted living licensure.
Please be aware we are working hard towards bringing back some sense of visitation normality in the very near future. We would like nothing more than to open our doors and welcome each and every one of our residents’ friends and family back inside without regard to a global pandemic. Unfortunately, we aren’t quite there yet. MVM strives to keep your loved ones safe, as healthy and as content as we can. Please continue to be patient with us as more and more visitation changes occur.
As the scientific information continues to change; and our NYS DOH regulations continue to be updated, please allow us the opportunity to review their information and formulate the best safety plans that we can in order to maintain resident health as our successful record has shown over the past year .
If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact us during normal business hours.
March 2021 Holiday Update
Mountain Valley Manor (MVM) would like to present the most current updates regarding resident and visitor visitations with the Easter / Passover holidays rapidly approaching.
It’s been a year since we first entered our isolation due to the global pandemic. It has been a very tough year filled with many ups and downs. MVM has maintained that our resident and staff’s safety and security is our paramount focus. As a team, together with our medical providers and families, we would like to thank you all and take a moment to pat all of ourselves on the back for our continued cooperation, vigilance, and overall success.
The Passover holiday and Easter Holidays are coming soon and we would like to outline our policy for residents and visitors regarding out-trips and visitation.
**THIS IS ONLY FOR THE PASSOVER AND EASTER HOLIDAYS **.
Visitors-
All visits (no exceptions) will need to be scheduled through the appointment maker application at : https://mountain-valley-manor.appointlet.com/b/mountain
This requires some documentation to be completed by the resident visitors that is required by New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) to be kept on file.
Please note the following:
Only 2 people will be allowed to visit per resident per appointment.
Individual visits are restricted to persons 16 years of age or older. If a visitor is younger than 16 years old (they will be counted as a visitor) and they must be accompanied by a person 18 years of age or older.
Visitors will be screened for COVID-19 signs and symptoms prior to the visit. An email reminder for the visit will be sent with a link to an online form to be filled out by the visitors. If the form is not completed prior to the visit, the resident visit will be cancelled.
Visitors who arrive for their scheduled appointment time should pull around the back of the facility and remain in their vehicle. Visitors are instructed to call 331-1254 upon their arrival and will be screened additionally by an MVM staff member. Visitors are then to remain in their vehicles until they are told otherwise by MVM staff.
Visitors will be required to be masked at all times, demonstrate proper hand hygiene (using hand sanitizer as per NYSDOH regulations) and will be required to remain socially distanced from their loved one (6ft per NYS regulations).
Visits will be scheduled for only 15 minutes increments due to the high resident family demand, the limitations of the facilities infrastructure, and adherence to the overall NYS regulations and recommendations regarding visitation.
Any items brought in for residents will continue to be subjected to a 24 hour hold and sanitation. Items may not be given directly to the resident at their visits.
Visits are to be held in the designated visitation areas only. No other movement by residents or visitors on the property will be permitted at this time.
We apologize but as of now we are only able to accomodate one visitation per resident. If there are open appointments that remain unfilled as we get closer to the day of visitation we may be able to accommodate other arrangements per request.
Out trips-
At this time the NYSDOH has reduced the restrictions on residents leaving the facility for non-medical purposes. MVM has put forth the following policy regarding residents leaving the facility during the holiday weekend:
We would like to highly discourage this option. While we do understand the desire to have your loved one as part of your holiday celebrations, we are still facing a medical pandemic that is not over. A resident or family member’s vaccination status does not guarantee full immunity to the virus. In addition, your loved ones reside in a communal setting with other residents who may not have the same protections as they have and/or may additionally have health conditions that make the Covid-19 virus more dangerous to them.
Again, these parameters only pertain to out trips for the holiday weekend of Easter / Passover 2021
It is highly recommended that out trips are limited to home visits only. All churches, places of worship, and restaurants are discouraged. Overnight trips are not permitted at this time.
Any family member who wishes to take their loved one home for the holiday will be required to put forth their intentions to do so in writing no later than Thursday April 8th, 2021.
The responsible family member who signs up will be required to submit in writing specific information regarding the resident out trip. This form must be completed and submitted to MVM in advance or the out trip will not be permitted.
Residents will be required to have a pick up time and a drop off time between the hours of 9:00am and 2:30pm due to the intake and discharge safety processes.
We are respectfully requesting that the total time for our residents to be out of our facility to be limited to 3 hours or less. We will attempt to accommodate the drop off and pick up times as best we can, however, we may not be able to accommodate your times requested in every instance.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the administration office during normal business hours. Thank you for your continued support and cooperation in these difficult times.
Updated Visiting and Out Trips
Mountain Valley Manor (MVM) has received new updated guidance from New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) regarding family visitations. At this time we will be continuing our window visits and utilization of our family visiting pod until the weather turns warmer and we are able to offer outdoor, socially distanced, face to face visitations. Please use our visitations scheduler to obtain an appointment for these visits.
We would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone of the continued regulations from NYSDOH for our residents regarding them attending social gatherings. At this time it is strongly recommended that residents not attend any gatherings outside of MVM. If a resident would like to leave the facility to attend a social gathering they are required to notify the facility and administrators 1-2 weeks in advance of the gathering. A responsible family member is required to attest in writing that the resident will follow the proper safety protocols set down by NYSDOH including but not limited to:
1) A digital document will be sent to the family contact for completion no less than 7 days prior to the events. Failure to complete and submit this document to administration will result in MVM refusing to allow the resident to leave the facility.
Residents must be picked up by the previously approved family member at the pre-approved scheduled time. We will honor a 15 minute window around the scheduled pick up to allow for traffic or other circumstances. The approved family member that is scheduled will arrive at MVM, call to state they have arrived and will remain in their car until a staff person comes to greet them. At this point and all times, the driver must be masked. The family member’s temperature will be taken and logged for NYS DOH Covid-19 Screening.
2) Residents will be required to wear a mask at all times during the duration of their trip out with the only exceptions for eating or drinking, which must be done six ft (6 ft) apart from other individuals.
3) In accordance with Governor Coumo’s recent executive orders, private social gatherings will be restricted to 10 persons maximum. Residents must be counted in those 10 persons and will not be allowed to leave MVM if the events will contain more persons then legally allowed.
4) Upon their return to MVM, residents will be masked and escorted to their rooms to ready themselves for a shower. There will be no exceptions to this. After their shower, they will be placed in their resident rooms in isolation for 14 days while they clear Covid-19 precaution protocols.
5) All residents returning from an out trip will be required per NYSDOH to have a negative COVID swab no more than 24 hours old prior to returning to the facility regardless of their vaccine status. The resident will be swabbed for COVID three additional times after their return to MVM during their isolation period.
6) MVM will contact the resident’s initial responsible primary family contact to review if any persons attending the events have/had any symptoms consistent with COVID-19 and or have had a positive test for COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
7) Resident families are required to provide a list of all persons in attendance at any social events attended by residents. This information includes all contact information including: names, addresses, phone numbers, if they have recently traveled out of state (where?), or any other relevant information pertinent to NYSDOH or local department of health requests.
We understand that in these unprecedented times and after a year of isolation from our loved ones that the situation is not ideal. However, our primary focus is on protecting all of our residents, staff and families from the continued spread of COVID-19. Your assistance in this matter is greatly appreciated. If you have any questions or concerns regarding NYS DOH policies regarding residents’ social gathering attendance procedures, please reach out to us at 845-331-1254 or healthcare@mountianvalleymanor.com Thank you in advance for your compliance and patience regarding this very important directive.