Weekly Update November 19, 2021

November 19, 2021
To: Solheim Employees, Residents, Family Members and Stakeholders
From: Sam Oden, CEO of Solheim Senior Community

I’m sure many are rushing around at this point to finalize their preparations for Thanksgiving, but I’d like to pause and take a moment to share how grateful I personally am for everyone in the greater “Solheim Family” – for our wonderful Residents, for their fantastic family members and friends, and for Solheim’s incredible staff and selfless Board of Directors. Thank you all for being amazing, and I wish everyone a blessed Thanksgiving holiday. 

Please remember that next Friday is the deadline to timely return your Resident Satisfaction Survey, if you have received one.  These surveys are a very important tool for Solheim to get a sense of how we are doing in the eyes of our residents. Your responses provide us with information that is necessary to fulfill our mission statement: “To provide abundant living for older adults in a caring faith-based community filled with love, peace, dignity, and security.” Thank you so much for taking the time to submit your responses.

Another reminder: All residents and staff who received the primary series of Moderna and J&J COVID-19 vaccines at least 6 months ago are now eligible for the Booster Dose. We are partnering with LACDPH to provide these Booster Doses to all eligible residents and staff at Solheim.  Our dates will be Tuesday November 23rd, and Tuesday November 30th, in the Health Center large dining room between 10am and 3pm. 

Today is also the deadline to RSVP for our Thanksgiving Dinner at 12 noon on Thursday November 25th for a cost of $25 per person (up to 2 guests per resident).  If you haven’t yet RSVP’d, and plan on attending, please reach out to Kathy Rust at kathyr@solheimsenior.org or by phone at 323 257 7518 x 224.

We are entering the season where we reflect on our blessings and give thanks.  We will send out a separate message, and you will have the chance to show your appreciation for our staff with the opportunity to offer a monetary donation, which will then be distributed equally among all staff.  You may always offer kind words through our Solheim Feeling Employee Recognition nomination cards found at the front desk or nursing stations, or visit us online at www.solheimsenior.org/employee-recognition.  These kind words mean the world to our staff!

To remind everyone about our ongoing protocol for visitations: For visitations throughout campus—from our Health Center, to our Residential and Assisted Living Campus, to our Halvorson Memory Care Neighborhood—in accordance with guidance provided by our regulatory agencies, we will now require either proof of vaccination, or proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of the visitation.  (We have rapid testing available on site, Monday through Friday, during business hours for unvaccinated visitors who have not been able to obtain a test within the previous 72 hours.  Rapid testing returns results within approximately 15 minutes and there is a $20 administrative fee for this service.)  All rules and protocol remain unchanged, and we thank you for your continued partnership, diligence, and patience in continuing to follow all of these important guidelines.

As of today’s writing, I am very happy to report that we have no new confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 anywhere on campus. 

If you have any specific questions, please direct them to Tina Antypas at 323 257-7518 X225 or tantypas@solheimsenior.org.