18 May McKnight’s: Park Springs staff shelter in place with residents
McKnight’s Senior Living reporter Kimberly Bonvissuto interviewed Donna Moore, COO at Isakson Living, which owns and operates Park Springs, regarding the decision to shelter-in-place on the 61-acre campus in order to protect 500 members. Nearly 60 staff members have volunteered to ride out the pandemic with their members since late March to ensure that basic services continued for residents, while also reducing potential exposure to COVID-19 from outside the community.
The number of employees sheltering with residents has climbed to 73 with most agreeing to stay on through the end of May and more recently extending their commitment through June 12, if necessary. The plan has kept COVID-19 out of the campus for the most part as there have been no cases in Park Springs’ long-term care, memory care or assisted living units.
Staff members check on residents throughout the day, monitor nutritional health, host activities that adhere to social distancing guidelines and provide exercise, cooking tutorials and physician updates via its in-house television services, TouchTown. Khurram Khan, M.D., an on-staff geriatric specialist, is using telemedicine visits for both residents and employees, as well as seeing residents when necessary.
“Our objective was to fulfill our mission to love and serve our members,” Moore said. “I don’t want to do another ask, but I know the plan I’m putting in place, the plan we are working on, is to get us out on June 12.”
To see the news segment online, visit the McKnight’s Senior Living webpage here.