Since August 30, the American Cancer Society has averaged one facility once again welcoming guests each day.
Earlier this summer, we announced a phased reopening plan for our Hope Lodge communities based on staff capacity, partner agreements, facility readiness, and community COVID transmission rates.
At that time, we were hopeful that community transmission rates would continue a downward trend. However, the rise of the Delta variant in communities across the country required us to quickly reevaluate our criteria to meet the immediate needs of cancer patients amidst the pandemic.
Recently, we continued our phased reopening of Hope Lodge communities with newly revised criteria. Hope Lodge communities will reopen at reduced capacity, gradually increasing occupancy in the coming months.
The following facilities are currently serving guests:
- Puerto Rico
- Charleston
- Burlington
- St. Louis
- Rochester, Minn.
- Iowa City
- Honolulu
- Greenville
- Memphis
- Jacksonville
- Atlanta
- Omaha
- New York
- Philadelphia
- Kansas City
- Minneapolis
- Jackson, MS
- Birmingham
- Dallas
- Salt Lake City
The following facilities are available for referrals:
- Lubbock, TX
- Tampa
“It’s clear that finding a path to opening our Hope Lodge communities in the face of the ongoing pandemic has to be a priority,” said ACS CEO Karen E. Knudsen, MBA, PhD. “Many people might wonder what has changed that allows us to feel confident about reopening. The truth is that a lot has changed. Vaccines and testing are now widely available. That, along with ongoing public health prevention strategies that follow CDC guidelines, now make it possible for us to safely reopen our communities and provide this vital support for cancer patients.”
The safety of our guests and staff remains our top priority. Each facility will implement comprehensive, layered prevention strategies to reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission.
We’ll continue to refine our safety plans as facilities reopen. Additionally, all facilities will reopen with “essential personnel” only, which means that only Hope Lodge staff, patients and their caregivers, and approved vendors will be permitted in facilities.
PHOTO: Pictured is our Hope Lodge in Salt Lake City.
*Shared from MySocietySource.
No comments:
Post a Comment