Lawrence Presbyterian Manor reports good news in COVID-19 test results

It was good news for Lawrence Presbyterian Manor in mass testing conducted this week. The community tested 35 residents and 92 employees, including six members of the therapy staff. All tests were negative for COVID-19.

“We will continue our efforts to keep COVID-19 out of our building and protect the health of our residents and employees,” said Jeanne Gerstenkorn, vice president for health and wellness for PMMA (Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America).

The mass testing was conducted after 3 health care residents tested positive for COVID-19 August 16 and an employee tested positive August 11. The Douglas County Health Department recommended mass testing. The tests were conducted on August 18 and 19. Following the negative results, the health department recommends another round of testing for health care residents and all employees again next week.

With 1 employee and 3 residents testing positive in a 7-day period, Lawrence Presbyterian Manor was designated a COVID-19 cluster by the health department. A cluster is defined as two or more cases of COVID-19 tied to a specific location in a specified time frame.

The COVID positive residents will remain in isolation in a designated COVID-19 area and be cared for by the COVID-19 Rapid Response Team. Rapid Response Team members are following doctor’s orders for treatment protocols and following CDC infection prevention protocols. We will follow CDC and KDHE guidelines for when the residents may come out of isolation. Under the current guidelines, symptomatic residents may leave isolation when at least 72 hours have passed since resolution of the resident’s fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and the resident’s symptoms  have improved and at least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared. Asymptomatic positive residents will quarantine for 14 days.

The employee is recuperating at home and must be COVID-19-free before returning to work. We follow CDC and KDHE guidelines in determining when an employee may return to work.  Under the current guidelines, the employee may return to work when at least 72 hours have passed since resolution of the employee’s fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and the employee’s symptoms have improved and at least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared. Asymptomatic employees must self-quarantine for 14 days before returning to work. Upon the employee’s return to work, we will follow CDC recommendations related to work practices and restrictions.

We encourage all staff members to follow CDC guidelines and best practices as these are continually updated.  We have been screening employees as they enter the community building for a shift and before employees have any direct contact with residents.  We educate all staff to stay at home if they are experiencing symptoms of a respiratory illness or not feeling well.

For more information about Lawrence Presbyterian Manor’s response, go to PMMA’s (Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America’s) website, presbyterianmanors.org/media-room.

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