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Nursing homes in St. Louis: What they did right to prevent COVID-19

"We had staff members move here willingly and we had an RV in the parking lot that had managers stay"

ST. LOUIS — Writing letters and FaceTime calls have become a norm during COVID-19.

This was especially common inside nursing homes and long-term care facilities, as in-person family visits were at a halt.

But after three months, the state of Missouri is allowing visits, but with strict guidelines. 

RELATED: Missouri to allow outdoor visits at long-term care facilities

Tim Dolan, the founder of Dolan Memory Care Homes said they're trying to allow three visits per family per week, all outside.

"We had one person who hadn’t seen their loved ones in a 100 days. We’re doing all our visiting on our porches. Families aren’t coming into the house," Dolan said. 

The state's guidelines allow up to two visitors, 6 feet apart. Hand hygiene is required before and after each visit. Face masks are a must and completing a screening is also on the list. Family visitations are limited to outdoor visits or visits through an open window for those who are bedbound.

"It’s wonderful to be able to reunite these folks with their loved ones," Dolan added.

But nursing homes in the area have been working hard to get to this point.

Dolan Memory Care Homes, which has been in business in west St. Louis County for 26 years, has 160 residents.

They haven't had a single COVID-19 case. Dolan said his staff was proactive instead of reactive when the virus first began.

Extensive screening became a key component and so was the structure of the living situation.

Only 10 residents and staff were living in each home. The homes were originally designed for smaller confinements because it can control the stimuli of those with early dementia and Alzheimer's. 

"That model is also good for infectious control," Dolan explained. They were able to control who came in and out and put them on lock down. 

RELATED: COVID-19 task force leader on Missouri weekend cases: 'It's important to understand what that number represents'

Plus, Dolan asked staff if they were working at other locations, in order to limit the spread.

"We would go to them and say, 'You either work for Dolan or work at another job'. More hours will be given if needed," Dolan said. 

The same goes for the Cottages of Lake St. Louis, when it comes to preventative care.

Christie Tutschulte is the vice president of Care Management of the Ownership team. She explained how their design is also part of their success. 

"We have six cottages where 10 elders reside in each. Each person has their own bedroom and bathroom. We staff our caregiver per cottage," she explained.

Cottages has had no deaths and there have been no positive COVID-19 cases among residents or staff since April. They had two cases in March.

Tutschulte also said the staff and managers went above and beyond to ensure safety.

"We had staff members move here willingly and we had an RV in the parking lot that had managers stay," Tutschulte added.

RELATED: Is COVID-19 worse than the flu? After five months, the answer is becoming clearer

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