Dear Family and Friends,
I hope you are spending some time outside enjoying the sunshine and listening to the birds. The sounds of spring are reassuring and provide us with hope amid such a new landscape. While the island seems much quieter in many ways, my house is now much louder as it is energized by our three kids. Figuring out daily schedules, learning what ZOOM is, and trying to find a new rhythm to each day has been a process. Needless to say, the dog is very happy.
While my house is bustling and busy, I know that many of my friends and family have houses that may feel all too quiet - so I am making sure to reach out to them and share some of the energy that abounds from ours. That is our duty – to take care of ourselves and then reach out to our friends and neighbors who may need some company, supplies or simply a joke to lighten the load.
To date, the island has three cases of COVID-19.
Here is a link
to an article about the first two cases on the island. Please take the time to read it as it illuminates the difficulty in diagnosing and testing for this new virus. The testing rules are changing constantly and testing will become more accessible each week. I am comforted to know that Bainbridge Senior Living staff does meet the criteria. While no one has tested positive, we have sent staff away to get tested simply because they had household members with possible symptoms, or were not feeling 100%.
We have been working very closely with the Washington Health Care Association (WHCA) to stay in front of the ever-changing guidelines and tips. This week we were invited to order test kits for our communities. The kits would be for residents and staff and while I still have a lot of questions around how these tests would be administered, the ball is rolling to get our own supplies on deck.
Today our nursing staff is meeting with Bainbridge Prepares. Bainbridge Prepares offers our island an amazing resource and I can’t thank them enough for the efforts they have made connecting resources and needs on this island. Please visit the Bainbridge Prepares website by
clicking here
, and also sign up for their newsletter. The City of Bainbridge Island (COBI) has also been helpful, giving us a small supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). In the event a resident tests positive for COVID-19, they would be able to provide us with some additional back up PPE.
I wanted to thank each of you who have reached out to me and offered help. We will certainly be in touch if there is a need. In the meantime, we plan to keep our lines of communication open by providing these updates – and hope to add weekly updates from each of our communities which include photos so you can all have a glimpse of life on the inside.
A few housekeeping notes:
- We continue to clean all surfaces per CDC guidelines
- We are leaving all incoming items outside until they can be properly cleaned and wiped down
- We are purchasing supplies a week early so that we can “quarantine” these supplies before putting them into use (dry goods, office supplies, etc.)
- We are prepared to make the switch to 100% room service should the need arise
As always, if you have questions for a specific community, please send those directly to the appropriate Executive Director:
With Gratitude,
Morgan Rohrbach
President and CEO
Bainbridge Senior Living Contact Info:
Jim Fuller, Madrona House, Executive Director 206.317.6002
office
541.292.1834
cell
Mitzi Stern, Wyatt House, Executive Director 206.780.3646
office
206.941.3592
cell
Michelle Worley, Madison House, Executive Director 206.565.3390
office
360.689.3699
cell
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 can be found on the CDC website:
Updates to the COVID-19 Situation in Washington can be found on the WA DOH website:
