Photo Courtesy:Province of British Columbia, Flickr

By Veronica Beltran

opening back up

Province says visitors will be allowed at long-term care and seniors’ assisted living facilities

Jun 30, 2020 | 3:07 PM

VICTORIA–Long-term care facilities are beginning to allow visitors, and the Province is investing in a suite of initiatives to keep residents protected.

Residents will be able to begin to have a single designated visitor in specific visiting areas. According to the Ministry of Health, the approach will be monitored through July, with a goal to expand it in August if all goes well.

“British Columbians flattened the curve through individual actions and a commitment to look out for each other – our families, friends and neighbours.”–Adrian Dix, B.C. Health Minister

“That commitment has come with many sacrifices, especially from our seniors and Elders who have been separated from their loved ones. That’s why throughout this pandemic, we are have sought to continually improve our long-term care and seniors’ assisted living operations, to make them safer for residents and those who care for them. Each of us must continue to be completely committed to combatting this virus for these historic investments to be effective,” adds Minister Dix in a release.

Each facility will have to develop written plans outlining how they will meet updated requirements in place by the Provincial Health Office. Some of the visitation requirements for long-term care home and senior’ assisted living facilities include:

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• Visitation in individual facilities can resume once they have their required written safety plan in place
• Once in place, residents will be able to have one designated visitor in appropriate designated spaces
• all visitors must bring and appropriately wear masks

Essential visitor restrictions remain in place for other health-care settings. Personal service providers such as hairdressers will once again be allowed into long-term care and seniors’ assisted living facilities only if they have completed a WorkSafeBC safety plan.

The province is providing more than $160 million for facilities to hire up to three full-time equivalent staff in each of the province’s 680 long-term care homes and seniors’ assisted living residences, including both public and private facilities. This could mean up to 2,040 additional staff dedicated to ensuring infection prevention and control measures for COVID-19 are being followed to support safe visitation.

The Province will also provide $26.5 million for facilities to address costs they incurred between March 1 and June 30 through additional screenings that only those approved to enter facilities do so; costs incurred due to sick time and self-isolation; costs for changes to services, delivering meals to rooms or staggering meal times to ensure physical distancing, additional housekeeping and enhanced cleaning; and infection prevention and control costs.