Educational Resources

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American Heart Association
National Center: 7272 Greenville Ave. Dallas, TX 75231
Customer Service: 1-800-AHA-USA-1 or 1-800-242-8721
https://stroke.org/en/

American Neurological Association
1120 Route 73 Suite 200
Mount Laurel, NJ 08054
(856) 380-6892
https://myana.org/

Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF)
4891 East Grant Road Tucson, AZ 85712
(520) 325-1044
Fax: (520) 318-1129
www.carf.org

National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke
9000 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20892
(301) 496-4000
(800) 352-9424
1-800-352-9424
https://www.ninds.nih.gov/

Point TIS Point of Care Team-based Information System
(Web resources on spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury)
(305) 243-6441
http://calder.med.miami.edu/pointis/

The Brain Injury Association
(Catalogue of educational materials)
105 N. Alfred Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 236-6000
Fax: (703) 236-6001
www.biausa.org

The Brain Research Foundation
120 S. LaSalle Street, Suite 1300
Chicago, IL 60603
(312) 759-5150
https://www.thebrf.org/

The Springfield Center of Independent Living
(Maintains ABLEDATA, a free national computer service that can access materials on disability issues)
330 S Grand Ave W Springfield, IL 62704
Phone: (217) 523-2587
Fax: (217) 523-0427
Email: scil@scil.org
https://www.scil.org/

Tourette Association of America
42-40 Bell Boulevard, Suite 507
Bayside, NY 11361
888-4-TOURET
www.tsa-usa.org/

COVID Visitation Policy

Per revised guidance from the State of Florida related to the state of emergency secondary to the COVID-19 pandemic, FING will provide for limited visitation for residents presently residing in the facilities. These policies and procedures are subject to change without notice dependent upon additional guidance from local, state, and federal authorities. For the duration of the public health emergency, if this policy differs from established policies regarding visitation or client rights and responsibilities, this policy takes precedence.

POLICY

FING is committed to providing our residents with the opportunity to receive visitors of their choice at the facility where they reside. Due to the public health emergency secondary to the COVID-19 pandemic, this visitation is subject to restrictions as stipulated by local, state, and federal law. Where FING policies and procedures vary from provisions of the law, the law takes precedence. 

All FING facilities are required to continue to prohibit the entry of any individual to the facility except in the following circumstances. All individuals entering the facility who will have physical contact with residents are required to wear personal protective equipment pursuant to the most recent CDC guidelines. Persons without physical contact with any resident must wear a mask. 

Use of a face shield is not an acceptable substitution for a mask. While FING is committed to accommodating the special needs of all individuals, due to the imminent risk of transmission of COVID-19 posed by unmasked individuals and research clearly demonstrating that a face shield does not provide comparable protection to a mask, accommodations will NOT be provided for in-person visitation by individuals unable or unwilling to wear a facemask. FING will assist in providing virtual visitation via appropriate technology in such instances.

Revised orders from the State of Florida provide for limited visitation for three categories of visitors. Those categories are as follows:

  1. Essential Caregivers-individuals who have been given consent by the resident or his or her representative to provide services and/or assistance with activities of daily living to help maintain or improve the quality of care or quality of life for a facility resident. Essential caregivers include persons who provided services before the pandemic and those who request to provide services. These services must be defined in the client service plan, and these providers must be identified in resident service plans. Services may include assistance with bathing, dressing, eating, and/or emotional support. This category of visitors includes private-duty nursing/patient care providers and outside clinicians with whom resident/families choose to contract for services, such as outside therapists, physicians, etc.
  2. Compassionate Care Visitors-individuals providing emotional support to help a resident deal with the difficult transition or loss, upsetting event, or end-of-life situations. This category includes workers with hospice/palliative care and loved ones visiting with residents who are dying.
  3. General Visitors-individuals other than Essential Caregivers or Compassionate Care Visitors wishing to visit with residents. This category relates to visitation of friends and family not associated with provision of healthcare services or terminal illness.

Per statute, the facility will continue to provide visitation by attorneys of record, public guardians, and representatives of federal, state, and local government seeking entrance as a component of official duties, provided such individuals comply with all screening and infection prevention and control procedures as established in this and other applicable policies and procedures and appropriate federal, state, and local regulations.

PROCEDURES

Procedures for Essential Caregivers and Compassionate Care Visitation 

Per Executive Order from the State of Florida, each resident may designate up to two essential caregivers and up to two compassionate care visitors. Visitors in these categories must be designated in writing, and they must provide relevant information to include their name, contact information, category of visitation, and any relevant professional licensing information. The following procedures apply to visitation by individuals in these categories.

  1. Other than in end-of-life situations, only one such visitor may visit an individual resident at a time.
  2. Visits must be scheduled in advance with the resident’s Nurse Case Manager
  3. Visits must be a component of an established treatment plan with documentation of completion of services provided to the facility for the resident medical record.
  4. Prior to visiting with the resident, visitors must undergo formal training in infection prevention and control procedures, including training in use of personal protective equipment, hand hygiene, and social distancing. Documentation of completion of this training will be maintained at the facility. Visitors will be required to sign acknowledgment of completion of training and commitment to adherence to facility infection prevention and control procedures. Visitors must schedule this training through the Nurse Case Manager at the facility. Individuals who have not completed this training will not be permitted to visit with residents.
  5. Visitors will be required to submit to screening to include completion of questionnaires and submit to having their temperature taken on arrival. Individuals who fail screening will not be permitted to enter the facility or visit with the resident.
  6. All visitors must sign in and out on a visitor log.
  7. In the event a resident is on quarantine for possible exposure, positive testing for COVID-19, or demonstration of symptoms of the virus, visitation will be prohibited with the exception of compassionate care visits.
  8. Visits will be monitored for adherence to appropriate use of personal protective equipment and social distancing. Failure to comply with infection control procedures may result in restriction or revocation of the individual visitor’s permission to visit.
  9. Visitors may be required to comply with facility-provided COVID-19 testing under local, state, and/or federal guidelines. Failure to comply with this testing may result in restriction or revocation of authorization to visit.
  10. All visitors must wear appropriate personal protective equipment consistent with the most recent CDC guidance. At a minimum, a surgical mask or comparable face covering will be required at all times. If a visitor is providing his/her own mask and, in the judgment of facility staff, that mask is inadequate, the facility reserves the right to require the visitor to wear a surgical mask provided by the facility.
  11. The facility will designate the location where services are to be provided. Unless necessitated by care to be provided, all such visitors will maintain social distancing at all times.
  12. All visitors must inform the facility immediately in the event that they test positive for COVID-19 or develop symptoms consistent with COVID-19 within 14 days of any visit. 

Procedures for General Visitation

Per revised orders from the State of Florida, general visitation (i.e. visitation not associated with provision of clinical services or end-of-life circumstances) is once again permitted in long-care facilities in the State of Florida. Residents may designate up to five general visitors, and may be visited by no more than two visitors at a time. The following procedures apply to visitors in this category.

  1. For visitation to occur, the facility must have no new facility-onset of resident COVID-19 cases in the previous 14 days.
  2. For visitation to occur, the facility must have 14 days with no new facility-onset of staff COVID-19 cases where a positive staff person was in the facility in the 10 days prior to the positive test.
  3. In the event that any resident within the facility, any staff member who has worked with in the past 10 days, or any visitor who has visited the facility in the past 10 days tests positive for COVID-19 or is exhibiting symptoms indicating that he or she is presumptively positive for COVID-19, all general visitation at the facility will be canceled until the above criteria are met.
  4. Authorization for visitation is dependent upon availability of staff to support management of visitors.
  5. All visitors must be 18 years of age or older
  6. All visitors must be on the resident’s list of designated visitors.
  7. Prior to visiting with the resident, visitors must undergo formal training in infection prevention and control procedures, including training in use of personal protective equipment, hand hygiene, and social distancing. Documentation of completion of this training will be maintained at the facility. Visitors will be required to sign acknowledgment of completion of training and commitment to adherence to facility infection prevention and control procedures. Visitors must schedule this training through the Nurse Case Manager at the facility. Individuals who have not completed this training will not be permitted to visit with residents.
  8. All visitors must wear an approved face mask at all times and perform proper hand hygiene prior to visiting. If a visitor is providing his/her own mask and, in the judgment of facility staff, that mask is in adequate, the facility reserves the right to require the visitor to wear a surgical mask provided by the facility. 
  9. Visitation will be permitted by appointment only. Appointments must be scheduled with the resident’s Nurse Case Manager. Visitors arriving without an appointment will not be permitted to visit.
  10. Visits will be monitored for adherence to appropriate use of personal protective equipment and social distancing. Failure to comply with infection control procedures may result in restriction or revocation of the individual visitor’s permission to visit.
  11. Visitors will be required to submit to screening to include completion of questionnaires and submit to having their temperature taken on arrival. Individuals who fail screening or decline to comply will not be permitted to enter the facility or visit with the resident.
  12. Visitors must sign in and out in the visitor log.
  13. Visitation will take place only in designated areas within the facility. Visitation areas will have hand sanitation stations and will be fully disinfected between visits. Visitors must maintain social distance of at least six feet with staff and residents and limit movement in the facility.
  14. Visitors must provide current contact information to permit the facility to reach them in the event that it is later determined the visitor was potentially exposed to COVID-19 during the visit. Individuals declining to provide contact information may not visit.
  15. Visitors may be required to comply with facility-provided COVID-19 testing under local, state, and/or federal guidelines. Failure to comply with this testing may result in restriction or revocation of authorization to visit.
  16. All visitors must inform the facility immediately in the event that they test positive for COVID-19 or develop symptoms consistent with COVID-19 within 14 days of any visit. 

Staff/Facility Procedures

  1. The facility will provide a designated space for visitation, either indoors or outdoors, that is protected from weather elements, with cooling devices if needed, in a space that is not accessible by other residents, and with availability of appropriate hand sanitation.
  2. The facility staff will thoroughly sanitize visitation areas between each visit.
  3. If a resident is bed-bound, the facility will facilitate visitation in the resident’s room.
  4. The facility will provide a designated contact person through which visitors may schedule visits and complete required training on facility infection prevention and control measures.
  5. The facility will provide staff for screening of visitors.
  6. The facility will provide a surgical mask for any visitor who does not possess their own, acceptable face covering.
  7. The facility will provide staff to monitor visits for compliance with all infection prevention and control procedures, including use of personal protective equipment and maintenance of social distancing.
  8. The facility will immediately alert any visitor who has been in the building within the past 10 days if any resident, staff member, or other visitor simultaneously present in the facility has tested positive or demonstrated symptoms consistent with presumed positivity for COVID-19.
  9. The facility will inform stakeholders of any changes to policies and procedures for visitation during the public health emergency.
  10. The facility will make every effort to alert scheduled visitors in the event that it is necessary to suspend visitation under the provisions of these policy and procedures. It may not be possible to alert scheduled visitors in all situations prior to their arrival. While FING is sensitive to the inconvenience this may bring about, visitors will not be granted access despite failure to provide advance notice of suspension of visitation.
  11. The facility will maintain documentation of all non-residents entering the facility to include the following:
  • Name and contact information of the individual entering the facility
  • Date and time of entry
  • Screening mechanism used to conclude that the individual may enter the facility. Documentation must include the screening employee’s name and signature
  • Documentation of completion of training in facility infection prevention and control procedures

Resident/Representative Procedures

  1. The resident and/or his or her representative will provide the facility a written list of his or her designated visitors.
  2. Residents are encouraged to wear facemasks during all visits if tolerated by their condition
  3. Residents/representatives will immediately inform facility staff in the event that any individual who has visited with the resident in the past 14 days tests positive for COVID-19 or demonstrates symptoms consistent with presumed infection with the virus.

REFERENCE:

State of Florida Department of Emergency Management Order numbers 20 – 009, 20 – 006, 20 – 007

State of Florida Executive Order number 20 – 52, 20 – 166

Policy and Procedure 2.8, 2.2, 4.1.18