Providence COVID-19 Updates

 

 

 

November 16, 2020 

Dear Family Members and Residential Staff, 

With a growing number of Covid-19 cases in Anne Arundel County and across the state, I want to remind you of our commitment to provide supports in the safest manner possible and to ask for your continued partnership. 

Providence follows guidelines from the CDC, the DDA, the Department of Health and our elected officials regarding our operations. We practice strict safety processes that include temperature screenings, masks and other PPE where appropriate, thorough cleanings, proper hand washing and social distancing. We continue to support a limited number of people within our community locations and we are choosing community activities where we can practice social distancing. 

For your part, we ask that if your family member is sick, please keep them home, contact your health care provider and follow instructions regarding returning back to Providence. With flu and cold season upon us and Covid-19 sharing similar symptoms, we need to be especially vigilant to minimize the spread of any illness. We also ask that you continue to monitor communications from Providence and reach out to your Case Manager with any questions or concerns. 

If you haven’t had a chance to explore our virtual programs, I encourage you to do so. This is an excellent opportunity for people to supplement their current supports, to engage with their friends and our staff and to learn about and explore new and interesting topics. Participation has doubled since August and we have received a lot of positive feedback from our virtual learners and their families. Please click here for a schedule of classes and contact your Case Manager to sign up. 

Thank you for your continued support. 

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist,

President and CEO

September 22, 2020

 

August 20, 2020

Dear Family Members and Residential Staff,

I wanted to share a few reminders.

First, Providence continues to follow strict safety precautions for COVID-19. In our community locations, this includes temperature checks, limiting visitors, social distancing, deep and thorough cleanings, enforcing hand washing and hand sanitizer use, and wearing masks and other forms of Personal Protective Equipment where appropriate. In the community, we are avoiding crowded areas where it is hard to practice social distancing and are wearing masks, using hand sanitizer, and washing hands when that is an option. In our vehicles, we are limiting the number of riders, wearing masks, and cleaning the vehicles after each use.

Please do not send anyone to Providence if they are sick. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fever, chills, muscle pain, sore throat, and loss of taste or smell. Other less common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

If someone shows symptoms of COVID-19 while at Providence, that person will be isolated to minimize any potential exposure and family members or residential providers will be called and expected to provide transportation home within an hour.

If someone we support or a staff member tests positive for COVID-19, we will notify anyone who may have been in contact with that person, alerting respective family members and residential staff. We will recommend that anyone who came in contact with that person get tested and quarantine for 14 days. The DDA, the Office of Health Care Quality, and the Maryland Department of Health will also be notified and we will follow all requirements and guidelines on operations, contact tracing, and any additional steps to minimize exposure. Anyone who has tested positive will not report back to Providence until they are healthy and their health care provider has released them.

I appreciate your continued partnership as we work together to provide the safest environment possible for the people we support as well as our staff.

I also wanted to remind you to explore our new Virtual Learning Platform. Currently 30 people are taking advantage of this great opportunity. Please take a look here at the classes we have to offer. From history to science, self-advocacy to art and many fun activities in between, there is something for everyone to continue to build skills and stay engaged when they are home. We continue to build the program, so please let us know if you have a specific interest that isn’t already part of the curriculum at kmitchell@providenceofmaryland.org.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist

President and CEO

July 27, 2020

Dear Family Members and Residential Staff,

It is hard to believe that three weeks have passed since we began our second phase of resuming services. What was an adjustment at first for many of us, has quickly started to settle into a good routine. I am so grateful to see so many of the people we support enjoying opportunities to do some of the things that are important to them and to see our staff hard at work each day to make this a reality for every person.

While a small number of people are coming to our community locations, most of our supports are being provided within the community. People are returning to their jobs and are engaged in skill building and career discovery activities. There are trips to our local parks, go-carting, miniature golf and many more outdoor activities to take advantage of each day.

Safety continues to be the top priority and we are diligently following our new safety protocols. Temperature taking, social distancing, enhanced cleaning, and masks are all now familiar parts of our daily routines.

As you may have read in our newsletter that was emailed last week, we are excited to launch our Virtual Learning Platform which will provide a full curriculum of virtual supports to help people continue to learn, build skills, and stay engaged from their home. Classes begin August 1^st and your Case Manager should be in contact with you to provide registration information.

For people who have not yet resumed services, we will continue to stay in contact with you and will work with each person to develop a plan to resume supports when you are ready. This is a great time to take advantage of some of the exciting classes available on the Virtual Learning Platform.

Covid-19 continues to dominate the news and our lives and I want to assure you that we will continue to follow guidance from the DDA, CDC, the Department of Health and our local officials. Should there be a need to make alterations to our operations, we are prepared to act quickly. Please continue to monitor communications from Providence.

I want to close by thanking each of you for your partnership over these past few months and for your continued patience during this unprecedented time. We have certainly overcome some hurdles with the support of each of you and our hard-working staff and, with your continued partnership, we will continue to move forward and we will work to support you and your family to the best of our ability in the months ahead.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist

President and CEO

June 26, 2020

Dear Family Members and Residential Staff,

I wanted to provide you with an update on our operations and let you know how excited we are to start resuming services.

We are reopening one person at a time, working with each person and their family or residential provider to develop their plan to return to services. Approximately 60 people are currently receiving some form of individualized supports in the community, including employment supports. Our return to services plan will follow a phased-in approach, with a larger number of people returning to services during the week of July 6^th.

To prepare for our reopening we have taken the following steps:

• secured supplies of hand sanitizer, masks, gloves and temporal scanner thermometers
• developed protocols and policies to address sanitation and safety
• completed staff trainings on new policies
• completed practice training on new procedures and protocols
• provided specialized trainings like trauma informed care
• prepared our buildings and vehicles for safety and social distancing
• collected data to determine our technology needs for virtual supports as well as transportation needs

Our administrative office is open, work continues in our greenhouses, and our pottery studio is open to staff.

During our next phase, starting July 6^th, we are reopening two of our community locations in stages with limited hours and reduced capacity. We will increase the number of people who receive personal supports and those who are funded for 1:1 supports, extend personal and 1:1 support hours each day, reconvene our CDS groups in shifts and smaller groups, and operationalize our pottery and horticulture programs with people we support. During this phase, we will only provide minimal door to door transportation with help from our Direct Support Staff and family members. Virtual supports will play a big role in this phase and will be offered more broadly as we develop a more formalized virtual supports program.

This has been a challenging few months for all of us and I want to thank you for your support during this time. I ask for your continued patience and partnership as we move through our phases of reopening. You will notice some staffing changes as we adjust to a reduced capacity, we may call on you to help with transportation, and our timelines may shift as we follow guidance from the DDA, local officials, CDC, and health department. As always, our top priority is to provide meaningful supports and an environment that is as safe and secure as possible.

We are optimistic about the future and look forward to continuing to work with you in the months ahead.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist

President and CEO

Please note, Providence offices will be closed on Friday, July 3, 2020.

 

June 9, 2020

Dear Members of the Providence Family,

I hope you and your family members are doing well.

I am pleased to report that Providence has begun a gradual reopening. In this first phase of reopening, we have opened our administrative office for staff and have resumed Personal Supports and one-on-one supports for some people on a limited schedule. We have been supporting essential employees in their community jobs and are supporting a growing number of employees as they are called back to work.

Our Case Management team is reaching out to all families to discuss plans to resume supports and will work with each person, their families, and their residential program if needed to develop a plan. We expect everyone to be contacted by the end of this week but please feel free to reach out to your Case Manager in the meantime.

Please know that the health and safety of each person we support and our staff remains our top priority. Our reopening will continue to be measured with guidance from the DDA, our local authorities, the CDC, and our local health department.

I also want to take a moment to thank our Return to Services team. They have been working extremely hard to consider numerous factors to prepare for a safe reopening including: social distancing in our buildings and in our vehicles, adequate supplies of Personal Protective Equipment, policies and procedures to ensure safety including what to do in the event of an illness, how community outings will look and how  community jobs may be impacted, and coordination with provider partners. Most importantly, they are working to make sure each person receives supports that are meaningful and safe and that they feel secure, which may include incorporating virtual supports as part of their plan.

As we move forward, timely communications will be very important. Please continue to check your email, our website (www.providenceofmaryland.org) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc) for updates. If you haven’t registered your email or phone number for alerts, please do so at https://forms.gle/8RH8FXBm64hGpBCm9.

I appreciate your support and understanding over the past few months and I look forward to your continued partnership in the months ahead.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist , President and CEO

May 22, 2020

Dear Members of the Providence Family,

I hope you and your family members are doing well.

I wanted to provide a few updates and requests:

• First, we have made the decision to extend our closure through Monday, June 15, 2020. We will continue to make closure-related decisions every few weeks as we monitor information from our regulatory agencies, health departments, and local authorities to guide our plans for reopening. To help you plan, we will provide ample notice once we have made any final decisions.
• Our Case Managers are beginning to reach out to people and their families who receive Personal Supports through Providence to discuss resuming those supports.
• We still have two more virtual town halls for families scheduled for May 28th and May 29th and hope you can join us. For more information, visit https://providenceofmaryland.org/event-news/providence-center-covid-19-updates/. If you are unable to attend and would like a recording of one of the sessions, please contact your Case Manager.
• Please continue to check your email, our website (www.providenceofmaryland.org) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc) for updates.
• If you haven’t registered your email or phone number for alerts, please do so at https://forms.gle/8RH8FXBm64hGpBCm9.
• We continue to work remotely. If you need to reach Providence, please use the following numbers: Program-related calls can be directed to your Case Manager; Human Resources-related calls can be directed to Jackie Harris-Harrell at 443-867-8159; and Community Relations calls can be directed to Aimee Bullen at 443-995-9730.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist, President and CEO

May 18, 2020

Hello families and caregivers!

Just a quick reminder that Karen Adams-Gilchrist will be hosting town hall meetings via Zoom on the following dates:

• Tuesday, May 19th at 5PM
• Thursday, May 21st at 9AM
• Thursday, May 28th at 6PM
• Friday, May 29th at 2PM

This is a great opportunity to get all of the latest updates on our plan for re-opening and to ask any questions you may have.

To participate, please email Jackie Anna at janna@providenceofmaryland.org to let her know which session you would like to join.  You can also include any questions that you have.   Once you have been registered, you will receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the call.

Please make sure to register no later than 10PM on the evening prior to the session you want to participate in.

We look forward to seeing you at a meeting!

May 12, 2020

Dear Families,

I hope you and your family members are doing well.

I want to update you on our extended closure and upcoming virtual town hall meetings for families.

First, we have made the decision to extend our closure through Friday, May 29, 2020. As you know, we have been making closure-related decisions every 2 to 3 weeks. We will continue with that routine as we monitor information from our regulatory agencies, health departments, and local authorities to guide our plans for reopening. Once we have made final decisions on reopening, we will provide ample notice so you have time  to plan.

I also wanted to provide details on upcoming virtual town hall meetings. During the weeks of May 18^th and May 25^th, we will host virtual town hall meetings with all of you to stay connected and to let you know some of the things we are doing to get ready for our eventual reopening.

However; most importantly, I want to take this opportunity to hear directly from you! It is important to know your concerns, questions and suggestions, as we plan for our reopening. There are still many unknowns and your feedback will be very helpful as we put together our reopening strategy.

Please join me and our leadership team at one of the following Zoom town hall meetings:

Tuesday, May 19^th at 5PM

Thursday, May 21^st  at 9AM

Thursday, May 28^th  at 6PM

Friday, May 29^th at 2PM

You will need to register for a meeting by 10pm on Thursday, May 14^th by emailing Jackie Anna at janna@providenceofmaryland.org.  Please provide your first and second meeting preference and Jackie will register you and send a confirmation email back to you.  Each meeting is limited to 75 people, so register early to get into the meeting that works best for you.  

To help us better prepare for the meetings, please send any questions, concerns and/or thoughts you have about our reopening to Jackie by Thursday evening, May 14^th.   

All meetings will be held through Zoom which you can access through a computer, tablet or phone.  We will provide details on how to use Zoom and join the meeting with your meeting confirmation email. If you require assistance, please reach out to Shannon McLean at smclean@providenceofmaryland.org or 443-618-1287.

 I look forward to talking to you in the coming weeks.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist, President and CEO

April 28, 2020

Dear Members of the Providence Family,

I hope each of you and your family members are doing well.

I wanted you to know that we have made the decision to extend our closure through Friday, May 15, 2020. We will continue to monitor guidance from our regulatory agencies, health departments, and local authorities and will update you closer to May 15th with plans regarding operations after that date.

People who are supported in an essential job should continue to follow the schedule and requirements set by their respective employer. Providence will provide transportation and supports as scheduled.

I am sure many of you are starting to think about Providence’s plans for reopening. We will follow guidelines from the Governor, the DDA, the CDC and our local health department in determining when to reopen for business and will not reopen until we have all the precautions in place, and we have determined that it is safe to open.

Even though there are many unknowns, our team is hard at work in this planning process, including making sure we have adequate supplies of personal protective equipment if needed, exploring specialized training for staff and the people we support, considering tactics for social distancing, and developing policies and procedures to ensure safety.

To answer any questions our families may have, we are planning to hold virtual town hall meetings for our families and will communicate those plans in the near future.

In the meantime, please continue to check your email, our website (www.providenceofmaryland.org) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc) for updates.

If you haven’t registered your email or phone number for alerts, you can do so at here.

If you need to reach Providence, please use the following numbers:

Program-related calls can be directed to Kristina Mitchell at 443-223-6265.

Human Resources-related calls can be directed to Jackie Harris-Harrell at 443-867-8159.

Community Relations calls can be directed to Aimee Bullen at 443-995-9730.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist,

President and CEO

April 8, 2020

Dear Members of the Providence Family,

I hope each of you are doing well and staying safe and healthy.

I wanted to let you know that Providence has made the decision to extend our closure through Thursday, April 30, 2020. We will continue to monitor guidance from our regulatory agencies, health departments, and local authorities and will update you later this month on future plans for operations.

People who are supported in an essential job should follow the schedule and requirements set by their respective employer. Providence will provide transportation and supports as scheduled.

Please check your email, our website (www.providenceofmaryland.org) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc) for updates.

If you haven’t already, register to receive email communications and/or robo-calls here.

Providence’s Administrative and Case Management teams continue to work remotely.

If you need to reach Providence, please use the following numbers:

• Program-related calls can be directed to Kristina Mitchell, 443-223-6265.
• Human Resources-related calls can be directed to Jackie Harris-Harrell at 443-867-8159.
• Community Relations calls can be directed to Aimee Bullen at 443-995-9730.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist
President and CEO

March 25, 2020

Dear Providence Family,

Providence has made the decision to extend our closure for two weeks through Friday, April 10, 2020. This is another necessary step given the evolving COVID-19 situation locally and current guidance from our regulatory agencies, health departments and local authorities. The health and safety of our staff and the people we support remains our top priority.

People who are supported in a job should follow the schedule and requirements set by their respective employer. Providence will continue to provide transportation and supports as scheduled.

We will continue to reassess the situation and will communicate plans for reopening closer to April 10, 2020 using the following methods:

Providence Website: www.providenceofmaryland.org

Providence Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc 

Emails to registered email addresses and robo-calls to registered phone numbers.

Register to receive email communications and/or robo-calls here.

If you need to reach Providence while we are closed, please use the following numbers:

• Program-related calls can be directed to Kristina Mitchell at 443-223-6265.
• Human Resources-related calls can be directed to Jackie Harris-Harrell at 443-867-8159.
• Community Relations calls can be directed to Aimee Bullen at 443-995-9730.

Thank you for your support and I hope you are staying safe and healthy.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist
President and CEO

Providence . 930 Point Pleasant Road Glen Burnie, MD 21060 . 410-766-2212 . www.providenceofmaryland.org

March 16, 2020

Dear Members of the Providence Family,

With new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and local authorities regarding group gatherings, Providence has made the decision to close operations starting tomorrow, Tuesday, March 17, 2020 through Friday, March 27, 2020.

The health and safety of the people we support, our staff, and our community partners is our top priority and we feel that closing is in the best interests of the Providence family.

People supported in jobs will continue to receive transportation services and they should check with their respective employers concerning any changes to work schedules.

Providence will continue to reassess the situation and will communicate plans for reopening closer to March 27, 2020 using the following methods:

Providence Website: www.providenceofmaryland.org

Providence Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc

Emails to registered email addresses and robo-calls to registered phone numbers.

Register to receive email communications and/or robo-calls here.

If you need to reach Providence while we are closed, please use the following numbers:

• Program-related calls can be directed to Kristina Mitchell, 443-223-6265.
• Human Resources-related calls can be directed to Jackie Harris-Harrell at 443-867-8159.
• Community Relations calls can be directed to Aimee Bullen at 443-995-9730.

Thank you for your support and please stay safe and healthy.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Karen Adams-Gilchrist
President and CEO

Providence . 930 Point Pleasant Road Glen Burnie, MD 21060 . 410-766-2212 . www.providenceofmaryland.org

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March 13, 2020

To Members of the Providence Family:

We recognize that you have heard about numerous closings in the area. We wanted to let you know that Providence will continue to be open for business next week.

We understand that the situation around COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, is an evolving situation and we continue to monitor information and guidance from our health departments and regulatory agencies. We will evaluate and make determinations daily. Any changes to our operating schedule will be communicated through the following channels.

Providence Website: www.providenceofmaryland.org

Providence Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc

Emails to registered email addresses.

Robo-calls to registered phone numbers.

Register to receive email communications and/or robo-calls here.

Thank you for your support.

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March 12, 2020

To the Providence Community –

The health and safety of the people we support, our staff and community partners are our top priority. We continue to monitor news and information on the coronavirus including updates and guidance from the Maryland Department of Health (MDH), the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the Anne Arundel County Department of Health.

Currently, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 associated with Providence; however, we remain committed to providing accurate and up-to-date information regarding this evolving situation.

We will communicate any important updates via the following channels:

Providence Website: www.providenceofmaryland.org

Providence Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/providencecenterinc

Emails to registered email addresses.

Robo-calls to registered phone numbers.

Register to receive email communications and/or robo-calls here.

Precautionary measures being taken at Providence:

• Staff are diligently cleaning and disinfecting buildings and vehicles throughout the day.
• The soap in the dispensers at each of our sites is an approved and an effective cleaning agent for hand washing and killing germs. We have hand sanitizer in all of our locations.
• Our janitorial service is cleaning surfaces each evening.
• We are reminding the people we support to wash their hands frequently.
• We are asking staff to stay home if they have flu-like symptoms and seek appropriate medical care.
• If someone we support has flu-like symptoms, we will contact their family member or residential home to have them picked up and our staff will follow our emergency response procedures and CDC If someone is sick with flu-like symptoms, please keep them home and seek appropriate medical care.
• We are limiting community outings.
• We have signs at all entrances reminding visitors of our policies, and information sheets throughout our locations.

A few things you can do to stay healthy, like you would with the flu, are:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer or hand-wipe with at least 60% alcohol.

State agencies continue to develop comprehensive, coordinated prevention and response plans for COVID-19. If you have specific questions about COVID-19, please dial 211 to speak with an expert. For up to date information and resources in Maryland, please visit the Maryland Department of Health at health.maryland.gov/coronavirus.

930 Point Pleasant Road, Glen Burnie, MD 21060 | Phone: 410-766-2212 | www.providenceofmaryland.org