Strict protocols may have spared some nursing homes from COVID-19

COVID-19 hit Michigan’s nursing homes hard. State data shows that the residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities make up nearly a third of coronavirus-related deaths.

But not every nursing home was hit. According to Michigan’s long-term care data, only four of the ten such facilities in Kalamazoo County had any COVID-19 infections among residents. And most were concentrated in just one facility.

Why were some nursing homes spared while others suffered? An article in Bridge Magazine suggests those that dodged the virus were strict in their COVID protocols.

Facilities that escaped the virus “took COVID-19 very seriously from day one,” said Marianne Udow-Phillips, founding executive director of the Center for Health and Research Transformation at the University of Michigan.

COVID-free facilities were strict about cleaning, restricted people and things going in and out, and were aggressive about testing both staff and residents during the onset of the pandemic.

That information may be good for facilities looking to prevent the spread of COVID-19 as infection numbers rise.

You can read the full article here.