CC Young is COVID free, but family visits not yet allowed
CC Young Senior Living will remain closed to visitors because of testing hurdles required by that state before family meetings can begin.
In early August, Gov. Greg Abbott said that after nearly five months, families could visit their loved ones in nursing homes, provided there are no active coronavirus cases for two weeks. Other stipulations include testing staff each week and conducting monitored visits outside.
CC Young has not applied with the state to allow visitors. Officials say it is not sustainable — logistically or financially — to test all employees weekly.
“With results coming back up to two weeks later, and the annual price to test weekly — a $1.3 million expense — it does not make sense at this time,” CC Young said in a statement.
Fewer than 30 of the state’s 1,200 nursing homes applied to allow visitors as of Aug. 20, according to the Dallas Morning News. Half were denied or are still awaiting an answer.
Encouraging signs outside CC Young. Photo by Danny Fulgencio
However, CC Young is planning window visits to celebrate Grandparents Day on Sept. 13 for all 450 residents and families. The 30-minute visits will take place over nine days in September.
A “hug station” prototype is also being developed to facilitate “up close and personal hug visits” later this fall.
CC Young does not have any active coronavirus cases after reporting 14 in July.
On July 7, 30 residents from one floor at The Vista, plus 89 employees who serviced it, were tested for COVID-19. Seven residents and seven employees received positive results.
After following quarantine protocols, all residents and employees who tested positive, plus two residents whose results were inconclusive, were retested July 10 with a different lab. All results from the molecular swab test returned negative for COVID-19.
On July 16, the same residents and employees were tested again, and specimens were sent to the second lab. All results from the molecular swab test returned negative for COVID-19.
Those tests were followed by antibody tests, which involve a blood draw designed to detect antibodies that the immune system produces in response to COVID-19. All test results returned negative for COVID-19, indicating that residents and employees had not been infected with the virus, according to CC Young.
Since those tests, additional residents and employees have tested positive, only to be retested and have results return negative for the molecular-based and antibody tests.
“The multiple negative test results received for all residents and employees who initially tested positive for COVID-19 have provided great confidence to the CC Young team as to the efficiency of their protocols and ability to swiftly and thoroughly respond to a potentially challenging environment,” CC Young said in a statement. “CC Young is monitoring the situation day by day and will continue to be transparent with the results and information coming from within.”
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Jaime Dunaway is an editor with Advocate Media.
