members
TOGETHER
Heritage Ministries Designs COVID-19
Testing Stations
Design Will Protect Staff, Residents, and Preserve PPE Supplies
As mandated, testing of employees in long term care facilities has been ordered across
New York State, two of Chautauqua’s largest providers of skilled nursing services,
Heritage Ministries and Lutheran Jamestown, have begun working together to ensure
employees and residents within both organizations remain safe throughout the new testing
process. This includes a newly designed testing station created by the team at Heritage, with
the help of a locally owned small business.
Lisa Haglund, newly confirmed Heritage Ministries president and CEO, shared, “The health
and safety of our staff and residents are of the utmost importance. As we have been directed
to move into mandated testing for all employees by Governor
Cuomo’s office, we needed to determine how we could
implement that efficiently, while complying with
all regulations. We have to balance these changes
with the actual realities of supply chain challenges,
increased prices of personal protective equipment
(PPE), the impact to staffing ratios, and preventing
any impact to care.”
Haglund also expressed that she and Tom Holt,
President and CEO of Lutheran Jamestown,
share the same thoughts, and will be working
together to continue providing a safe
environment for the residents, staff, and
families of each organization. “Tom and
I have spoken at great length, and we
are both committed to the continued
support and protection of our staff
and residents as we navigate through
these new policies”. The collaboration
efforts will include best practices for
COVID-19 prevention, advocacy
with state and federal officials, as
well as other infrastructure needs,
as it relates to testing of staff.
Randy Jackson, Heritage
Vice President of Facilities
Management, and his team,
led by Glenn Williams, have been
working with a local Chautauqua County business,
D & S Glass, to meet these new testing needs. A mobile testing
booth has been designed that will provide the ability to safely administer
COVID-19 tests on-site while limiting exposure in both directions. D & S Glass will be
providing materials for the project to allow Heritage to quickly implement the new testing
process with their staff and residents after product testing.
Heritage employee, Don Robbins, building one of the testing stations designed
by the Heritage Ministries team
(See Heritage Ministries on page 59)
58 Adviser a publication of LeadingAge New York | Summer 2020