2 Aberdeen Village residents, 1 contractor test positive for COVID-19

Following a contract direct care health care worker testing positive for COVID-19 on September 16, two Aberdeen Village memory care residents and a contract health care provider have tested positive for the virus.

Last week, the Johnson County Health Department recommended we begin weekly testing of residents who may have had direct contact with that individual. That first round of testing took place on Monday, September 21. 36 residents were tested, including the two who tested positive today. One other test is still pending. Testing will continue until consecutive negative rounds occur.

We also continue surveillance testing of employees. Surveillance testing requires all employees, agency employees, volunteers, hospice, lab and therapy providers at our campus to be tested on a frequency determined by our county’s COVID-19 testing positivity rate. Based on our county positivity rate for COVID-19 tests, our campus is testing employees once a week. Most recently, we tested employees on Tuesday, September 22. That testing resulted in the positive test of the contract health care provider.

“As we’ve done since the beginning of the pandemic, we’re continuing to put resident and employee safety first,” said Jeanne Gerstenkorn, PMMA’s infection preventionist and vice president for health and wellness.

The residents who tested positive are recovering in a designated area of our community and being cared for by designated staff. Both are asymptomatic at this time.

The Johnson County Health Department and Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Epidemiology Hotline have been notified of today’s test results. They do not recommend any further steps at this time, since ongoing weekly testing is already taking place, per their prior recommendations. However, these positive tests mean Aberdeen Village is officially designated as a COVID-19 cluster. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines a cluster as two or more non-household cases associated with a location during a specific period of time.

The COVID positive residents will remain in isolation and be cared for by designated staff. We will follow CDC and KDHE guidelines for when the residents may come out of isolation. Under the current guidelines, symptomatic residents may leave isolation when at least 72 hours have passed since resolution of the resident’s fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and the resident’s symptoms have improved and at least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared. Asymptomatic positive residents will quarantine for 14 days. Designated staff members are following doctor’s orders for treatment protocols and following CDC infection prevention protocols.

We follow CDC and KDHE guidelines for when an employee or contractor may return to work. Under the current guidelines, symptomatic individuals may return to work when at least 72 hours have passed since resolution of the individual’s fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and the individual’s symptoms  have improved and at least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared. Asymptomatic positive individuals will be asked to quarantine as directed by the local health department. Upon the individual’s return to work, we will follow CDC recommendations related to work practices and restrictions.

Due to the potential exposure, group dining and activities and outdoor compassionate care visits remain on hold in the affected neighborhoods.

All employees and contractors are encouraged to follow CDC guidelines and best practices as these are continually updated. We have been screening individuals as they enter the community building for a shift and before individuals have any direct contact with residents.  We educate all staff to stay at home if they are experiencing symptoms of a respiratory illness or not feeling well.

For more information about Aberdeen Village’s response, go to PMMA’s (Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America’s) website, presbyterianmanors.org/media-room.

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