We continue to have no known cases of Coronavirus in our care centers. The health and wellness of the people we serve and our staff continue to be our top priority. You may know that our staff provide one-on-one companionship to residents and many creative hallway and door to door activities are conducted to help boost resident spirits, contributing positively to their mental health and well-being.

As the weather improves, we receive many questions regarding outdoor visits. You may have heard restrictions for socializing are beginning to ease in Minnesota and businesses have been allowed to open in outside environments or other restrictions.  However, the state and federal guidelines for us have not yet changed. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) continue to advise no care center visits or open window visits at this time.

As of right now, we are continuing scheduled, closed window visits with residents. We also encourage alternative means of communicating with residents such as phone calls, Facebook, Skype, etc. We have obtained additional equipment to meet the demands of these virtual visits and staff are able to assist residents as needed. We are very grateful to families for their understanding as they help us to do everything we can to put the well-being of your loved ones and others who reside with us above all else; even when compliance with the rules keeps you from personal contact. 

Directions and guidance from governmental agencies are changing daily and we are preparing for the day we are able to lift these restrictions with specific visiting guidelines in their place. St. Francis Health Services has formed a committee, made up of care center leadership, charged with developing methods in which we could safely allow person to person visits, identifying the barriers that exist and brainstorming methods in which we could mitigate risk of our residents’ exposure.

Updated information on our planning and preparedness for Coronavirus and our activities within our care centers can be found by visiting our website (www.sfhs.org) or our Facebook page. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with any questions or concerns.