June 2, 2022

Independent Living

We have had 1 independent living resident test positive for Covid while at the hospital last night.

Skilled Nursing

We now have a total 12 residents and 3 staff members that have tested positive for covid-19.  The families of the residents who have tested positive have been notified and the residents are on isolation for 10 days.  We will continue to monitor all residents and staff for changes and re-test every 3-7 days for the next two weeks as suggested by the CDC.  All communal dining and activities will also be stopped during this time to help contain the potential spread.  Please limit your visits to your loved one only and remain masked at all times.  We also ask that you do not take anyone off the skilled nursing unit up to the lobby for visits during this time.  Thank you for your patience understanding.

May 31. 2022

Skilled Nursing

This communication is being sent to make you all aware that we had a resident test positive for Covid on Saturday, 5/28. We have subsequently tested all other residents and lab results are pending. We should have those by tomorrow 6/1/2022. We will update of pending results.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

March 5, 2021:

Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living and Memory Care Visitation:

With vaccinations becoming more widespread and our vaccination clinics completed we are getting many questions about when visitation can resume in our health care areas.Unfortunately, as of right now none of the restrictions for Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living and Memory Care have been revised. We hope the federal government will soon review and revise the guidance considering the declining cases and vaccine uptake so we can offer further visitation. However, Governor Ivey’s revised safer at home order will allow some loosening of visitation within limits. This updated state health order will allow family members to visit again while still taking into consideration the federal visitation requirements. Below is a summary of the federal restrictions for increased indoor visitation:

-There has been no new onset of COVID-19 cases in the last 14 days and the facility is not currently conducting outbreak testing

– Visitors should be able to adhere to the core principles and staff should provide monitoring for those who may have difficulty adhering to core principles, such as children

– Facilities should limit the number of visitors per resident (2) at one time and limit the total number of visitors in the facility at one time (based on the size of the building and physical space). Facilities should consider scheduling visits for a specified length of time to help ensure all residents are able to receive visitors.

– Facilities should limit movement in the facility. For example, visitors should not walk around different halls of the facility. Rather, they should go directly to the resident’s room or designated visitation area. Visits for residents who share a room should not be conducted in the resident’s room.

-The federal government will not allow for indoor visitation if the county COVID-19 positivity rate is greater than 10%. It must be below 10% for two weeks for visitations to occur.

As of today, Kirkwood has not had a positive test, resident or employee in over a month. The county positivity rate dropped below 10% for the first time since November on Monday 3/1/2021. If it remains under 10% on the weekly update on Monday 3/8/2021 and we have no positive tests over the weekend we will be able to resume visitations with limitations. If this occurs limited indoor and outdoor visitation can begin again on Monday 3/8/2021. Indoor visits on the halls will only be permitted with proof of completed vaccination series at this time. We would prefer outdoor visits when weather permits for the safety of all residents. Visitation both indoor or outdoor will still need to be scheduled through the proper people and Core Principles of COVID-19 Infection Prevention followed including:

– Visitors must wear a mask that covers their mouth and nose and practice social distancing, 6 feet, while visiting their loved one during their entire visit.

– Visitors must sign in before entering and have temperature taken.

We along with you are eager to open back up without restrictions as soon as it is allowed and safe for everyone involved. We continue to thank you for your patience and understanding.

To plan a visit in Skilled Nursing please contact Amanda White at205-956-2184 extension 160.

Planning a visit in Assisted Living or Memory care remains unchanged.

February 19, 2021:

Independent Living:

We have had no additional confirmed cases of Covid-19. We will continue to monitor.

Assisted Living:

No new developments.All residents are symptom free currently.

Memory Care:

No new developments. All residents are symptom free currently.

Skilled Nursing:

All tests performed this week, have been negative for Covid-19.

Staff:

Results for all staff tested this have been negative for Covid-19. We continue to test twice weekly.

Vaccination Update:

Third vaccination clinic will be held March 3, 2021.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

February 4, 2021:

Independent Living:

We have had no additional confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Independent living the last two weeks. We will continue to monitor.

Assisted Living:

No new developments.All residents are symptom free currently.

Memory Care:

No new developments. All residents are symptom free currently.

Skilled Nursing:

All tests performed the last couple of weeks since 1/14, have been negative for Covid-19.

Staff:

Results for all staff tested since 1/14 have been negative for Covid-19. We continue to test twice weekly.

Vaccination Update:

Second vaccination clinic will be held February 9, 2021.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

January 14, 2021:

Independent Living:

We have had no additional confirmed cases of Covid-19 in independent living this week.To date we have had a total of 11 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Independent Living and two deaths.Currently, 1 of these cases remain on quarantine. One tested negative and was cleared while at the hospital and was admitted from the hospital into our skilled nursing facility.

Assisted Living:

No new developments.All residents are symptom free currently.

Memory Care:

No new developments. All residents are symptom free currently.

Skilled Nursing:

All tests this week, 1/11-1/14, have been negative for Covid-19.No new cases identified and all that were positive have now tested negative and been removed from quarantine.

Staff:

Results for all staff tested from 1/7-1/14 have identified one staff positive. This individual has been largely asymptomatic and was removed from the schedule.

Vaccination Update:

The first vaccine clinic took place 1/12/2021 here at Kirkwood. We vaccinated a total of 185 people. 138 residents and 47 staff members.

Second Dose

February 9 – All levels of care and staff.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

January 8, 2020:

Independent Living:

We have one additional confirmed case of Covid-19 this week.To date we have had a total of 11 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Independent Living and two deaths.Currently, 2 of these cases remain on quarantine and one remains in the hospital.

Assisted Living:

No new developments.All residents are symptom free currently.

Memory Care:

The 1 resident that tested positive last week has been transferred to isolation on the Skilled Nursing unit.All other residents in Memory Care are symptom free at this time.

Skilled Nursing:

All tests this week, 1/4-1/7, have been negative for Covid-19.No new cases identified.The 3 that remain on quarantine are doing satisfactory.This includes the 1 Memory Care resident that was transferred.

Staff:

Results for all staff tested from 1/4-1/7 were negative for Covid-19.

Vaccination Update:

Vaccination for Long Term Care Communities will be done in tiers with Skilled Nursing being in Tier 1A and Assisted Living/Memory Care in Tier 1B.These areas will be receiving the Pfizer vaccination which will require two injections 21-28 days apart.It is my understanding that Skilled Nursing clinics will be completed before Assisted Living/Memory Care clinics begin.Walgreens will be administering the vaccination for all levels of care.The clinics scheduled is below.

First Dose

January 12 – Skilled Nursing and Independent Living

January 15 – Assisted Living and Memory Care

Second Dose

February 9 – All levels of care

December 7, 2020

Independent Living:

On 12/5, we had an additional resident that was taken to the hospital by a family member due to not feeling well. This individual was hospitalized and subsequently tested positive for Covid-19. This makes for 6 confirmed cases of Covid-19. There are two additional suspected cases however, these individuals have remained asymptomatic and likewise have tested negative at this point.

Assisted Living

No new developments. All residents are symptom free currently.

Specialty Care Assisted Living

No new developments. All resident’s symptom free currently.

Skilled Nursing

All test conducted 12/4, were negative for Covid-19. All residents at this level are symptom free currently. All test that was obtained on 12/5 and 12/6 were taken to the lab today 12/7. Results are expected 12/8.

Healthcare Visitation Update:

Many of you have asked what the visitation procedure will be in skilled nursing, assisted living and memory care now that the weather is turning cooler and outdoor visitation is not as feasible. We have a tentative indoor visitation plan, however, as part of our guidance from ADPH and CMS in order to permit indoor visitation other than end of life compassionate care 3 criteria must be met:

1. The facility must not have had a single positive test, staff or resident, for two weeks.
2. The county positivity rate must be below 10% for at least two weeks
3. Visitors must have a negative COVID-19 test within the last 48 hours.

Jefferson County has now surpassed the 10% positivity rate, 12.3 % as of 12/2. This means that indoor visitation is not able to occur. We will continue to arrange outdoor visitation when the temperatures are above 55 degrees. As you know, many of your loved ones become cold much easier and quicker than you do. Please remember visits must be scheduled in advance.

Staff

All test conducted this week have been negative for Covid-19. We are currently required due to county positivity rates to test all skilled nursing staff twice weekly, until such time as the positivity rate has dropped below 10% for a period of 2 consecutive weeks.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

November 9, 2020

Independent Living:

No new developments

Memory Care (SCALF):

As of today, we have a total of 9 residents that are positive for Covid-19. Two are in the hospital and 7 remain in the facility with minor symptoms.

Skilled Nursing:

All results for skilled nursing residents conducted 11/5 and 11/6 were negative for Covid-19.

Staff:

We have 3 staff that have tested positive for Covid-19. We were made aware that one staff member was admitted to the hospital this weekend but seems to be improving.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

November 6, 2020

Independent Living:

No new developments

Assisted Living and Memory Care:

As we reported on 11/3, we had one staff member test positive for Covid-19 at the hospital on 11/1. We then sent a resident to the hospital on 11/4 for shortness of breath and general malaise. The hospital reported back to us on 11/5 that resident was Covid-19 positive. We then initiated testing later 11/5 for all 18 residents of SCALF. The results indicate that 7 of them have tested positive for Covid-19. 1 resident is hospitalized, and the rest remain in SCALF and are being monitored closely. That makes for a total of 8 resident that have tested positive for COVID-19 in SCALF this week.

Skilled Nursing:

Weekly Covid-19 testing for Skilled Nursing employees conducted on 11/5, revealed that one staff member tested positive for Covid-19.We are in the process of testing all skilled nursing residents today 11/6 and will report results as soon as possible.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

November 4, 2020

Independent Living:

No new developments

Assisted Living and Memory Care:

It was reported to our Director of Assisted living that we had one staff member test positive for Covid-19 at the hospital on 11/1.  As such, we continue to monitor all our Assisted Living residents for signs and symptoms of Covid.  As of today, we have 1 resident that has pneumonia and 2 with nasal congestion.  So far, these individuals have not presented a fever or reduced oxygen saturation levels.  We will continue to monitor all residents and act accordingly if symptoms do arise.

Skilled Nursing:

Weekly Covid-19 testing for Skilled Nursing employees conducted on 10/29-10/30 and 10/31-11/1.  All 68 tests were negative for Covid-19.  We will continue to monitor and act accordingly.

Visitation Parameters for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Visits:

As the Thanksgiving holidays approach, we want to take the opportunity to begin communicating with you what is possible for visitation.  We will do so by level of residency so that we may try and limit confusion.  Please keep in mind that these parameters are subject to change based on guidance given by CMS, CDC, ADPH, or the Governor’s office. (See Below)

Independent Living:

Residents are free to visit with their families for Thanksgiving.  It is highly recommended that when you return from your visit that you practice personal responsibility and try to remain as socially distanced from the rest of the community as possible for at least 10 days.  We are asking that they govern themselves accordingly and do their part to keep our community safe.

Assisted Living:

Residents in Assisted Living may visit with their families during the holidays.  Upon return to the community, Assisted Living residents will be asked to quarantine for 10 days.

Memory Care Assisted Living:

Due to the difficulty in having residents quarantine in their rooms upon return on this level, residents will not be allowed to leave the community for Thanksgiving visits.

Skilled Nursing:

Residents will not be allowed to leave the community for Thanksgiving visits.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

October 13, 2020

Independent Living: No new developments.

Assisted Living and Specialty Care Assisted Living: No new developments.

Skilled Nursing: As of 10/12, results from testing on 10/8 and 10/9 showed all residents remain negative for Covid-19.

Staff:The weekend staff were tested on 10/10 and 10/11 and as of 10/13 all results are negative.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

October 12, 2020

Independent Living: No new developments.

Assisted Living and Specialty Care Assisted Living: No new developments.

Skilled Nursing: As of 10/12, results from testing on 10/8 and 10/9 showed all residents remain negative for Covid-19.

Staff:Testing of all staff conducted 10/8 and 10/9 showed all staff remain negative for Covid-19. The Weekend staff were tested on 10/10 and 10/11 and we are expecting results by 10/13.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

October 5, 2020

As I am sure you all have heard, Governor Ivey has amended visitation rules for Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living, and Memory Care Assisted Living that will allow for limited visitation.While this is a positive move for all in Alabama, there are still restrictions and regulations that must be followed from CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) and the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).The Alabama Nursing Home Association has provided the following guidance based on the CMS and CDC guidelines to family members:

• Do schedule an appointment to visit with your loved one
• Do use alcohol-based hand sanitizer before, during, and after your visit
  • Do wear a mask covering your mouth and nose during your entire visit in the facility
    • Do maintain social distance of at least six feet from staff and residents.No touching or hugging.
    • Do keep out of areas that are not designated for visitation
    • Don’t remove your mask while in the facility
    • Don’t leave the designated visitation area
    • Don’t come to the facility without an appointment
      • Don’t come to the facility if you have any symptoms – coughing, sore throat, fever, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of sense of taste or smell – even if you attribute these symptoms to some other cause (allergies or cold).

The following is a synopsis of the other CMS and CDC guidelines for specific levels of care that must be in place for visits to occur:

For Independent Living:

Families may visit residents in their apartments if desired.Please check in at the front desk and follow the normal screening procedures.We ask that visitation be limited to no more that two people at time and that you practice social distancing and wear mask at all times.

The main dining room will re- open on October 5, 2020.Due to the need to enact social distancing, we request that family members not join residents for meals at this time.

For Assisted Living and Memory Care:

• Visits MUST be scheduled.Visits can be scheduled through Cevannah Price, Lindsey Cullom, or Janet Lambert.No more than one person can visit a resident at a time.No more than three separate families can visit at one time.

• You must sign in at the front desk, answer a series of questions, and have a temperature check prior to visiting.

• County positivity rates must remain under 10% for visits to occur.These rates are updated weekly.If the county rate goes above 10% the visitation must be conducted outdoors until the rate is below 10% for a period of two weeks.The current county rate is 7.3%.

• At this time there is no regulation requiring routine testing of residents on these two levels of care.

• Visits must be at designated visiting areas.No in-room visits at this time.

For Skilled Nursing: (currently under outbreak testing)

As of 10/1, test of residents and staff in skilled nursing revealed that there were two residents that tested positive.The two residents that tested positive are showing no signs and symptoms of Covid, but have been moved to isolation rooms per protocol.No staff have tested positive for Covid-19 this week.

• Visits MUST be scheduled.Visits can be scheduled by contacting Amanda Herndon at 205-531-9100.No more than one person can visit a resident at a time.No more than three separate families can visit at one time.

• You must sign in at the front desk, answer a series of questions, and have a temperature check prior to visiting.

• County positivity rates must remain under 10% for indoor visits to occur.These rates are updated weekly.If the county rate goes above 10%, the visitation must be stopped until the rate is below 10% for a period of two weeks.The current county rate is 7.3%

• Visits must be at designated visiting areas.No in-room visits at this time.

• Newly admitted residents in Skilled Nursing who are negative for covid-19 from the hospital but on quarantine for 10 days can only visit via electronic communication until they come off quarantine.

• Visitation cannot occur indoors or outdoors if facility is conducting Outbreak Testing.Outbreak testing occurs if during your normal mandated testing one person, employee or staff, tests positive.If one person tests positive all staff and residents must be tested every 3-7 days until you go through a 14-day period of no positive tests.At this time, Kirkwood is conducting Outbreak Testing and are on a 14-day holding pattern until October 16^th for indoor visits.Between now and the 16^th, should anyone test positive during routine testing, we will begin the 14-day window again. During this time the only indoor visits can be end of life/compassionate care visits and must be scheduled.Visitation through window and door may continue during this time with a scheduled appointment.

• Visits must be at designated visiting areas. No in-room visits at this time.

For Assisted Living, Memory Care, and Skilled Nursing:

We have received several phone calls asking if a negative test from the visitor will be required prior to a visit.Our current guidance is that a negative test will not be required for outdoor visits.A negative test within 48 hours of the visit will be required for indoor visits other than end of life/compassionate care visit.

We thank you for your continued patience as we all work through this together.Please note guidance from our regulatory agency change frequently and this is subject to have changed by Monday.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

September 29, 2020

Independent Living: Everyone seems to be well and there are no reports of acute respiratory illness. Please note that Independent Living residents are welcome to receive no more than a few visitors in their apartments or outside.  We ask that you refrain from large group gatherings and that you wear a mask at all times while visiting.  We would recommend that you personally seek Covid testing if you are going to visit with your loved one.  We are planning to open the dining room under a reduced capacity scenario the week of October 5.  Programs will resume on a more regular schedule while maintaining social distancing, mask wearing, and proper hand sanitization.

Assisted Living and Specialty Care Assisted Living:   No new developments.  All residents are free of signs and symptoms of upper respiratory illness.  Please note that Assisted Living residents are free to leave the community to visit with families etc.  As such, we ask that families seek individual Covid testing at least weekly if they are going to visit with their loved ones. Residents are free to go off of the unit as they please, but will be discouraged from forming large gatherings and will be asked to wear a mask at all times.

Skilled Nursing: Last week, we conducted two separate rounds of testing to include all Skilled Nursing residents. Tests were conducted on 9/21 and 9/25 respectively.  All were NEGATIVE for Covid-19.

Staff:  Skilled Nursing staff were tested twice last week on 9/21 and 9/25.  All staff results were negative for Covid-19.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

See the latest testing results listed by level of care below.

Independent Living: We have one positive resident currently in the hospital, and will be discharged from hospital soon.

Assisted Living:  No known COVID illness.

Specialty Care Assisted Living:  No known COVID illness.

Skilled Nursing: We have two resident’s positive for COVID-19, both are asymptomatic and on isolation measures.

Staff:  Six staff members remain at home on quarantine.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

July 24, 2020

July 3, 2020

See the latest testing results listed by level of care below.

Independent Living- As of 7/3/2020 at 10:30am, We have received all results for a total of 59 IL residents tested. We have a total of 3 positives out of 59. All testing completed at this time.

Assisted Living- No changes in status since 6/30. A total of 2 Covid positive individuals are in AL and remain asymptomatic. Temperature checks and O2 saturation checks and chest x-ray ordered by Physician are clear. We will continue to monitor all residents and will act accordingly if symptoms arise.

Specialty Care Assisted Living- No developments. All residents confirmed negative. We will continue to monitor for signs and symptoms and will act accordingly if symptoms arise.

Skilled Nursing- Overall, we have tested a total of 45 residents in skilled nursing. Of the initial testing done on 6/25, there were 2 positive cases identified. One resident went out on 6/24 with symptoms and confirmed positive at the hospital. This case confirmed at the hospital on 6/24 prompted our facility wide testing on 6/25. The other resident went out on 6/27 and was confirmed positive at the hospital, this particular resident that went out 6/27, tested negative on 6/25 and is included in the 45 total individuals tested. As of today, we have had 2 deaths from Covid-19 related complications, 1 at the hospital and 1 here on campus. 1 resident remains in the hospital and 1 resident remains here at Kirkwood in isolation and as of today continues to be asymptomatic. We have had no other residents at this level present with any clinical symptoms of Covid at this time. That makes for a total of 4 residents tested positive and 2 deaths.

Staff- All staff testing has been completed. We have tested a total of 166 staff members. There are a total of 8 positives. 7 staff members continue to do well and are having no symptoms to mild symptoms. 1 I understand, was admitted to the hospital this morning.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

July 1, 2020

See the latest testing results listed by level of care below.

Independent Living- As of 7/1/2020 at 11:07 pm. We have received results for 15 Independent Living Residents. Of those, 14 were negative and 1 positive.

Assisted Living- No changes in status since 6/30. A total of 2 Covid-19 positive individuals remain asymptomatic and in their rooms at this point. We will continue to monitor all residents and will act accordingly if symptoms arise.

Specialty Care Assisted Living- No developments. All residents confirmed negative. We will continue to monitors for signs and symptoms and will act accordingly if sign and symptoms develop.

Skilled Nursing-Overall, we have had a total of 4 residents test positive in skilled nursing. 2 residents remain in the facility in isolation and remain asymptomatic. 1 resident remains in the hospital who was sent to the hospital on Saturday 6/27 and later tested positive for Covid at the hospital. 1 resident has passed away that was sent to hospital on 6/24. We continue to monitor all other residents on the skilled nursing unit for temperature, 02 saturations levels per shift and chest x-rays as needed. All vitals as of this morning are within normal limits.

Staff- We received results last night for 16 more staff members that were collected on 6/29 and 6/30. Of those 16, 10 are negative and 6 are positive for Covid-19. All staff members with positive results were notified during the night and have been placed in quarantine. Of the 6 positives, the breakdown is as follows; 1-maintanance, 2 administration, 1 home care, 2 dinning staff. Overall, that is a total of 8 staff members that have tested positive since last week.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 30, 2020

As we communicate the results of the latest campus wide Covid update, I think it will be best to report by level of care. While results are not in for Independent Living at this point, I do want to update people on where we are as of today while we await those results. Please note, that if your loved one should test positive; you will be notified individually of results as they are received. The statement represented today are as of 4pm.

Independent Living- Awaiting results.

Assisted Living- We have received for all residents. Of 21 residents we had (2) two positives for Covid-19. Those two individuals remain asymptomatic at this point. We will continue to monitor all residents and will act accordingly if symptoms arise.

Specialty Care Assisted Living- We have received all results for the residents at this level. All results were NEGATIVE.

Skilled Nursing- The (2) two residents that tested positive for Covid-19 last week, remain in the facility in isolation. They continue to do well and have not shown any classic signs and symptoms of Covid-19. We continue to monitor all other resident on the skilled nursing unit for temperature, 02 saturations levels and chest x-rays as needed. All so far are within normal limits.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 26, 2020

As of this morning, June 26, 2020, we have received all results of the Covid testing that was performed on all skilled nursing residents and staff. The results showed that of the 45 residents in house, we had an additional 2 positive cases in addition to the 1 case that was reported on 6/24/2020. Of the 78 staff members that were tested, there was 1 positive staff member from the Kirkwood operations side and 1 positive staff from a hospice provider. We are continuing to monitor all residents in skilled nursing for temperature and oxygen saturations twice daily. We are encouraged by the fact that even the 2 positive residents as of this morning are not showing any symptoms. These residents have been moved to a designated quarantine area where they will remain until negative results can be achieved. We will continue to monitor all residents and apprise all of the situation.

In addition, beginning Monday, June 29, 2020, we will begin testing all assisted living and memory care residents. Assisted living and specialty care assisted living residents’ responsible parties will be contacted concerning the testing procedure.

Also beginning Monday, June,29 2020 the test will be available for Independent living residents. We will go door to door in independent living offering this test. While we realize that independent living residents can refuse the procedure, we strongly encourage the test for the good of the community.

In light of our current situation, the main dining room in independent living will begin offering delivery service only effective 6/27/2020. We will no longer offer meal service in the dining room until further notice. Dining services will be delivering menus for Saturday and the rest of next week beginning this afternoon. As a reminder to all independent living residents, any social gatherings are strongly discouraged. We will continue to require that you wear a mask anytime you are outside of your apartment. We will begin reminding individuals that we see do not have mask on, to return to their units and put their mask on. This is not intended to be burdensome but, it is a necessary process at this time.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 24, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. As of the morning of June 24, 2020, we had one resident in our skilled nursing unit that was sent out to the hospital and we have since learned that this individual tested positive for Covid-19. This resident did not have a fever or a cough but daily diagnostics revealed a low O2 saturation level with lethargy.

We are monitoring other residents closely and have begun to test all residents and staff that live or work on that unit. We should have testing completed by tomorrow and will keep all apprised of the results.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 20, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

There are no changes in operations expected for the upcoming week and we have received no additional guidance from local or state health officials for re-opening nursing home or ALF/SCALF facilities to outside visitors.

We did receive a visit from the Alabama Department of Public Heath for them to conduct an Infection Control Survey on 6/16/2020.They cited no finding on this visit and had no additional recommendations for us to implement.When asked if they had any insight as to when we may be able to open facilities for visitation, her comment was that it is not likely anytime soon due to the prevalence of cases in Alabama trending upward in the last week.We will keep all posted of any additional guidance as we receive it.We truly appreciate your patience and understanding in these matters.We further ask that you continue to keep our residents, staff, families, and our Nation in your thoughts and prayers.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 12, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

There are no changes in operations expected for the upcoming week and we have received no additional guidance from local or state health officials for re- opening nursing homes or ALF/SCALF facilities.

We did receive notification today that the Jefferson County Department of Public Health (JCDPH) will begin visiting facilities once a week for the next 12 weeks. We have been told that these visits are to determine if JCDPH can offer recommendations to shore up infection control practices or offer PPE training.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 5, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

There are no changes in operations expected for the upcoming week and we have received no additional guidance from local or state health officials for re- opening nursing homes. If developments should arise, you will receive interim communication as soon as possible. We appreciate your cooperation and support during this time.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

June 1, 2020

This update is being generated to bring you up to speed on developments over the weekend.  Based on feedback we received from various sources, we regret to inform you that we will have to delay the dining and beautician arrangement for Assisted Living and Specialty Care Assisted Living.  This means they will not be able to eat in the dining rooms on their respective floors and will continue to receive meals in their rooms.  They will also not be able to have their hair done by the beautician.  I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Skilled Nursing: As we told you on Friday, we will begin admissions to our Skilled Nursing area starting June 1.  All new residents will have a Covid test 24 hours before they are admitted.  The new resident will be placed on an isolation wing for 14 days after arrival.  At the end of 14 days, they will be re-tested for Covid once more before being allowed to visit common areas or come outside their rooms.  This is an update from the communication that you received Friday, May 29.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

May 29, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

We will begin next week offering slightly more limited socialization.Here is what you can expect at each level of care:

Independent Living:Residents will be expected to call to make a reservation time to eat in the dining room beginning on June 1.Seating will be allowed based on social distancing guidelines, which will require that there be no more than 2 people at a four-top table and no more than 3 people at a six-top table.In order to accommodate all that may want to come to the dining room, we will offer two separate seating times at each meal.For lunch the seating times will be 11am and 1pm.For Dinner the seating times will be 4:30pm and 5:30pm.If we see that we need to adjust times on either meal, we will do so as necessary. For those uncomfortable with going to the dining room, in-room dining will remain available. You will need to call dietary to place your order, at least two hours prior to the meal. Daily menus will no longer be distributed to your apartment.

Assisted Living/Memory Care Assisted Living:We will allow residents to eat in their dining room again June 1.In order to meet social distancing guidelines, we will only allow 2 residents per table.We are taking one of our Assisted Living rooms off-line and setting up several additional tables so that social distancing can be achieved.

We will also allow the beautician, Jenny, to start doing Assisted Living residents’ hair again.She will only be allowed to have one resident at a time in the beauty shop and must clean and sanitize before the next resident can be brought in.

Skilled Nursing:We will begin admissions to our Skilled Nursing area starting June 1.All new residents will have a Covid test within 24 hours of admission and will be placed on an isolation wing for 7 days after arrival.At the end of 7 days, they will be tested for Covid once more before being allowed to visit common areas or come outside their rooms.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

May 22, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

On May 18, we received guidance from CMS on re-opening protocols for Skilled Nursing facilities.Rather than attempt to explain to you the numerous details and considerations, I have attached the actual CMS memorandum for you all to read at your leisure.Myself along with the rest our clinical team are working through the process in conjunction with state and local health departments to gain clarity and to formulate a plan for re-opening.Although CMS has issued guidance from a federal standpoint for re-opening retirement communities, the state of Alabama and Jefferson county have not.Please note in the CMS memorandum that they suggest that we differ to the guidance from state and local officials on re-opening.As of May 22, we have not received any guidance from state or local health officials.Therefore, we are still in Phase 1, which means all visitation restrictions, socialization restrictions, and screening measures remain in place.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

May 15, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress.We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

We have received several requests from families about special considerations for their loved ones. Please note that as we evaluate these requests, whatever decision is made is for the best interest of all involved and is not intended to be punitive. While many may approach me directly with these requests, please know that these requests are reviewed with our team and scrutinized from every angle. Many times, the results of these discussions do not yield the desired results for the family’s request but, we feel that the decisions made are the most prudent and reasonable decisions for everyone involved.

Please note that guidelines from the Department of Public Health, CMS, and CDC have not relaxed for Long term Care facilities. With that being the case, we will continue our current protocol into the foreseeable future.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

May 8, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress.  We have had no issues this past week concerning Covid-19.

We would like to start by wishing all of our mothers a Happy Mother’s Day!  While these are not ideal times to celebrate this joyous occasion, please understand that we are doing what we must out of love and concern for Mom.  As such, please be reminded that our visitation restrictions remain in place for this Mother’s Day weekend.

With Governor Ivey approving for salons to re-open next week, we will allow our beautician, Jenny, to begin doing hair by appointment only for Independent Living residents.  We will have Jenny tested for Covid-19 and require that she wear a face cover at all times while providing service.  We anticipate that Jenny will be able to begin making appointments by mid-week.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

April 23, 2020

We continue to monitor all of our residents for signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. As of today, we have no issues to report and it has been several weeks since we have had any significant developments. We will continue to be vigilant and will act accordingly if there are any symptoms observed.

While we are all anxious to hear from Governor Ivey that businesses are back open for services, I wanted to take this opportunity to make you aware of Kirkwood’s position currently and what our plans are for the next several weeks for getting back to “normal”.

As all of you are aware, Kirkwood made the decision on March 25, 2020 to stop all admissions to all areas of care because we felt that was the best course of action at the time. Please keep in mind that ADPH and JCDPH were still adamant and continue to this day to advocate that we continue admissions to our skilled nursing facility. We would like to reiterate that we will not put any of our residents at risk to satisfy any directive of a regulatory agency, especially when the regulatory agencies are well aware of PPE and testing shortages. We will consider admission of non-Kirkwood residents to skilled nursing at such time that adequate supplies and testing are readily available.

With that being said concerning skilled nursing, we do plan to begin admissions to Kirkwood for Independent Living, Assisted Living and Specialty Care Assisted Living. We have discussed with our Board of Directors and Medical Director a plan which would allow to begin admitting again on May 1, 2020. Any resident who admits will be required to have a negative Covid test, validated within 48 hours of admission. We will require all scheduled movers to be limited to a crew of not more than three individuals and they must all wear masks, at a minimum. We are allowing admissions to the areas only because we feel that we can better isolate those individuals to their rooms for a period of 14 days due to all accommodations being private rooms.

Many have also asked, “When will we be allowed to return to the facility to visit our loved ones?”. We do not have a definite answer to that question, at this time. We want all to understand that we are allowing caregiver family members to visit for the purpose of providing the necessary care and services to keep their loved ones safe and as healthy as possible. Also, we are allowing families to visit if a resident is on hospice or are actively in the dying process. In all cases, these individuals were playing an active role prior to this outbreak, either by sitting with their loved ones during critical times of day for them, preparing and administering meds, providing some other specialized care such wound dressing and/or other treatments that would likely be classified as a skilled service. Outside of these parameters, visitation will remain limited until such a time that it is deemed reasonably safe to resume normal visitation.

Finally, we have been in contact with the Alabama National Guard about providing additional sanitization services. They are providing all nursing facilities in the state of Alabama with this service and are tentatively scheduled to provide service to Kirkwood on 4/24 or 4/25. If you know or have contact with the Alabama National Guard in any way, help us thank them for their services.  May God continue to bless. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

April 17, 2020

It has been a quiet week across all levels of care from a Covid-19 surveillance standpoint. This means that we have not had anyone present with any symptoms and have NOT had any tests come back positive. We will continue to monitor our residents for any signs and symptoms and will act accordingly if there are any symptoms observed.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

April 13, 2020

Happy Easter!

Skilled Nursing- There are no new issues concerning Covid-19 to report. We continue to monitor residents closely and are happy to report that there are no residents showing any signs of acute respiratory issues. We will continue to monitor and act accordingly if issues develop.

Assisted Living/ Memory Care- There are no new issues concerning Coid-19 to report. We will continue to monitor and update all if there are concerns.

Independent Living- There– We have a resident in the Mountainview building that presented with complaints of not feeling well this morning. Upon evaluation, it was discovered that the resident is running a slight fever. His primary Physician ordered a test for Covid-19 and the results were NEGATIVE.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

April 10, 2020

There are no new issues concerning Covid-19 to report. We continue to monitor residents closely and are happy to report that there are no residents showing any signs of acute respiratory issues. We will continue to monitor and act accordingly if issues develop.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Chad Carter or Jeff Burchfield at 205-956-2184 for further information.

Thanks,

Chad Carter, President/CEO