To quarantine or not? CDC’s post-vaccine guidance for exposed workers gives nod to staff shortages
By
Alicia Lasek
Feb 12, 2021
Fully vaccinated individuals may now skip quarantine after exposure to an infected person. But that doesn’t go for healthcare workers in facility settings — except as a last option.
Most nursing homes lack tech capacity to communicate with clinical partners
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 09, 2022
Fully 68% of facilities surveyed nationwide were unable to communicate electronically with external partners, including clinics, labs or pharmacies, researchers from the Columbia University School of Nursing...
COVID test turnaround time tops 2 days for a third of nursing homes, data show
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 13, 2020
Among 13,000 facilities that provided their testing speed to the government, only 17% reported an average turnaround time of less than a day; and fully 29% waited three days or more on average for residents’...
CDC issues new COVID infection prevention and control guidance for nursing homes
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 15, 2021
A CDC Project Firstline webinar will answer clinicians’ questions on the updates, which include alternative approaches to outbreak response;
expanded screening test recommendations for healthcare...
AARP calls on nursing homes to require COVID-19 boosters for residents, staff
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 21, 2022
COVID-19 infections are at an all-time high among residents and staff and resident death rates are rising. Now is the time to “get shots in arms,” AARP leaders urged operators.
AARP: Nursing home residents in West bearing brunt of COVID infection uptick
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 22, 2022
Nursing home deaths and cases continued to rise in July for the third consecutive month, according to the latest analysis of federal data. Weekly upticks hint that the increases have not yet peaked.
Scientists predict new virus strain will worsen U.S. infection spike
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 15, 2021
Scientists are raising concerns that new genetic strains of SARS-CoV-2 will spark renewed outbreaks in the United States at a time when cases are already spiking.
‘How good are those vaccines now?’ Mixed AARP nursing home report prompts a thorny question
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 15, 2021
A new AARP report shows encouraging trends in COVID-19 cases and vaccinations. But the steady rate of resident deaths raises concerns for the future as vaccine efficacy wanes, analysts say.
All nursing home staff in Massachusetts must get COVID-19 shots
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 05, 2021
The state is requiring staff and contract employees in all of its 378 facilities to receive a vaccination, Gov. Charlie Baker announced Wednesday.
Stay on guard: Vaccinated residents remain susceptible to outbreaks, French nursing home studies reveal
By
Alicia Lasek
Jul 13, 2021
Vaccinations and infection control measures may not entirely protect nursing homes from COVID-19 outbreaks — especially when staff members are unvaccinated, according to two new studies from France.