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Update March 24, 2020

Updated 12:33 a.m., 3/24/20

  • Visitation
  • North Oaks is observing a “No Visitation” policy across the health system with the following exceptions.
    • NICU patients may have one parent for one visit per day.
    • Peds patients may have one parent in the room.
    • Patients at end-of-life who are not in isolation may have 4 immediate family members.
    • Patients at end-of-life who are in isolation may have one family member.
    • Emergency Room patients who need assistance getting to triage may have one visitor. However, once roomed, the visitor will have to remain in their car in the patient is able to participate in his/her own care. Otherwise, the Emergency Department may allow one visitor in the room.
    • Any patient who is admitted from the Emergency Department may not have the visitor transfer with him/her.
    • PEC patients may have a visitor at the discretion of the Emergency Department staff.
  • Employee Wellness Clarification: We are monitoring employees in three categories.
    • Symptomatic employees are at home
    • Staff who may have had community exposure but are asymptomatic – they are allowed to work, but must wear a mask and record their temperature 2 x daily. Instructions for recording your temperature, and the temperature log, are available on OakLink homepage.
    • Staff who may have been exposed (while not wearing PPE) to a patient deemed to be a Person Under Investigation, but are asymptomatic. They are allowed to work, but must wear a mask and record their temperature 2 x day. We are tracking the medical records of those patients and as the test results come back negative, are notifying staff they no longer need to mask and report temps. We are no longer calling employees every day due to volume. Employees are logging their temperatures and reporting to employee wellness if temperature spikes. Instructions for recording your temperature, and the temperature log, are available on OakLink homepage.
    • If you have questions call the employee wellness line at x. 5706. The department is manned from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. 7 days/week. After hours you can reach the employee wellness staff person on call through the hospital switchboard.
  • Patient Access
    • If anyone has special needs with access to call the command center at which time request will be evaluated. The Command Center can be reached at x.7018 or x.7022.

Updated 11:23 a.m., 3/24/20

  • The state is now updating stats once a day at noon. As of yesterday there were 1,172 cases of COVID-19 in the state, 32 dead. Tangi is reported as having 3, but we anticipate today’s number being 5.
    • We received a lot of test results yesterday, and they all were negative.
  • Michele thanked everyone for their hard work on essential staffing plans and helping us comply with the Governor’s stay-at-home order.
  • Correction: The additions to Infection Prevention team are Laura Lucky and Charles Dykes, Patient Safety Nurse, not Charles Abrams. (Sorry!)
  • The Command Center has been activated and will be staffed 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. 7 days/week. The telephone numbers for the Command Center are x.7018 and x.7022.
  • Infection Prevention Update: If you have responsibility for direct patient care, you will be required to wear a yellow isolation mask and self-monitor your temperature.
    • The only way the mask and other PPE are going to protect us and others is if we wear it correctly and dispose of it safely.
    • The yellow mask can be worn in and out of patient care areas and patients room as long as they stay on your face (over your nose covering your chin), after it is on and in place you should only touch it to remove and discard- you should only handle the ear loops to do this and you should be doing HH after mask removal.
    • When entering ANY isolation room, you should perform HH and don the required PPE for that room, all PPE should be doffed prior to exiting the room (only exception is airborne isolation- where you would doff in the ante room).
    • Yellow masks should be changed if become moist on the inside from your own Resp secretions or if they are contaminated on the outside by cough spray or touch with unclean or gloved hands.
    • Discard by touching ear loops only, do not touch front or inside of masks, these mask go directly into trash- do not bunch up, stick in your pocket, or put down on counter tops or equipment
    • All are deputized to reinforce proper PPE wearing. If additional instruction is needed please call me.
  • Temperature screening for all employees has been implemented. The Tower screening station will be open from 6 a.m. – 8 p.m.; the station at the main entrance from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.; and the ED screening station will operate 24/7.
    • Caresa Lemoine is handling staffing for this function. If clinical staff have an interest in helping at the screening stations, please contact her at x.6196.
    • Staff who have thermometers at their work station will be asked the screening questions at the station, will be allowed to go to their unit, and can take and report their temperature at their duty location.
    • The clinical staff who are performing temperature checks will come out to PFS/Resource Center/CBO to check temps after they get through shift change. All others need to report to the Tower lobby for temperature checks before their shift.
    • There will also be screening stations at NORH, HPPB and Clinic buildings.
    • Anyone with a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher will be asked to call the employee wellness line.
  • Employee Wellness Update: We continue to monitor employees in three categories.
    • Symptomatic employees are at home self-quarantining and logging their temperature 2 x day.
    • Staff who may have had community exposure but are asymptomatic – they are allowed to work, but must wear a mask and report/log their temperature 2 x daily.
    • Staff who may have been exposed (while not wearing PPE) to a patient deemed to be a Person Under Investigation, but are asymptomatic. They are allowed to work, but must wear a mask and report their temperature 2 x day. We are tracking the medical records of those patients and as the test results come back negative, are notifying staff they no longer need to mask and report temps. We are no longer calling employees every day due to volume. Employees are logging their temperatures and reporting to employee wellness if temperature spikes.
    • The employee wellness line (x. 5706) will be manned from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. 7 days/week. After hours you can reach the employee wellness staff person on call through the hospital switchboard.
  • We have completely suspended services in the following areas:
    • NOPG Multispecialty Clinic in Livingston Parish
    • Orthopaedic Specialty Clinic in Livingston Parish
    • Outpatient diagnostic center in Livingston Parish
    • Independence Primary Care
  • Outpatient diagnostic center in Hammond has a limited schedule
    • Casey is working on a plan to perform diagnostic mammography and biopsy services during limited hours for patients who require them.
    • Patients who require lab and x-ray must be scheduled – the ODC will not accept walk-in patients. Call x.7777 to schedule.
  • Supplies:
    • Our number one supply is our people. We are working hard to keep everyone safe and on the job.
    • Please be vigilant in use of PPE and good stewards of our supply. We are meeting daily to assess supplies.
  • Pastor Kincaid will start each day with an overhead page requesting a moment of self-reflection as we band together to provide care during this crisis.
  • Please continue to promote the State’s COVID-19 information line: 2-1-1.
  • Visitor control going well. Temperature checks have been implemented for all staff.
  • You’ll begin to see extra environmental hygienists assisting EVS keep surfaces clean. Hats off to EVS – they’re going a great job.
  • Population health received 265 calls yesterday. We are currently suspending the drive through testing station because testing kits have reached a critical level. We are saving them for staff and hospital inpatients. We will reopen drive through testing should additional supplies come in.
  • The community is reaching out with offers of food. We are working on a plan to share across departments. Food donations being coordinated by Melanie Zaffuto and Sherry Beale.
  • Donations of clinical supplies are being coordinated by Toni Shirey and her team.
  • Remember to track COVID-19 hours and non-patient supplies.
  • And finally – take care of yourself. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Use appropriate PPE and wash your hands!