COVID-19 has been around for months and there still isn’t a one-size fits all approach that addresses how to navigate the process of residents going on outings, which may be with their families, to attend medical visits (including outpatient hemodialysis), or all other reasons for leaving the building that residents normally did prior to COVID-19 and will at least some will need to continue during the new COVID-19 era.
The decision on what to do when residents return to the facility is based on their exposure risk during their “outing”. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “part of the challenge is being able to determine the level of risk for a particular exposure.” The reason for this is due in part to the individual risks that are associated with community prevalence of COVID-19 transmission rates and the infection prevention and control (IPC) practices that are being performed during transport, care delivery, and during other interactions associated with the outings. Since exposure risk varies, a one-size fits all approach is not appropriate.
For steps long term care facilities can take to educate, inform, and guide decisions about outings, download our updated resource.