Again, another holiday season that we have to get through with the COVID-19 pandemic. Many long-term care facilities and nursing homes are pressured to manage new challenges that are brought about when opening their doors to visitors. 

Issues such as breakthrough exposures and infections, unvaccinated employees, and palliative care staff shortages especially in Los Angeles aren’t making it easy to get back to business as usual. 

Therefore, if you are planning to visit your loved ones who are in hospice care in Los Angeles, there are some things you can do to ensure everyone stays safe this holiday season. 

Get Vaccinated

Ever since the pandemic first began, professionals giving hospice and palliative care in Los Angeles have listened and followed the guidelines set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). When the pandemic first started, the CDC provided simple instructions to keep everyone safe, including social distancing, mask-wearing, and hand washing. 

This past year, hospice and palliative care professionals in Los Angeles has witnessed this guidance unfold. Presently, the CDC advises that everyone over the age of five receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The CDC backs and approves the three available vaccines: Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.

If you want to learn more about which vaccine is most suitable for you, visit their website. When you are set to get vaccinated, vaccines.gov can help you set up your appointment and find out more about what options are available near you. 

You should remember that because of their age, older people and their friends who live in long-term residences are more vulnerable to contracting COVID-19. Believe it or not, being vaccinated is the most wonderful and thoughtful gift you can ever give to your loved one, as well as the doctors, nurses, and aides who keep her healthy throughout the year. 

Additionally, it should be noted that the CDC has recently extended eligibility for COVID-19 booster shots. Therefore, think about scheduling a follow-up when six months have passed since your second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.

Understand Your Status

Although you probably have taken the vaccine, there is a chance that you become asymptomatic if you are exposed to the virus. As a result of this, you have COVID-19 but don’t expose any symptoms. If this is the case before you visit your loved one, make an appointment to get tested and find out your status. 

It isn’t difficult to make an appointment, and test results arrive as swiftly as 24 hours. Many major cities have testing sites open for walk-in or same-day appointments. Typically, these tests are carried out free of charge or at a very affordable cost. Go to this website to find locations where testing is available near you.  

Or else you can know your status by using a rapid, at-home testing kit, which can give you result in around 15 minutes. These testing kits are not as trustworthy as lab-based tests, and however, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given emergency-use authorization to use them. Also, these tests can give you the peace of mind you are searching for if you need something quick and easy while traveling. 

When you plan to visit your loved one, do your best to ensure you have your proof of a negative test or vaccination card (or a photo version) available at hand if the facility needs one to enter. 

Wear Your Mask

The most uncomplicated and probably the best way to stay safe and lower the risk of harm is to wear a mask. Whether you are indoors, outdoors, or around people, you don’t know. Mask wearing will reduce your chances of coming into contact with COVID-19 or spreading it to others if you unintentionally come into contact with it. For a helpful guide on the dos and don’ts of mask-wearing along with what masks work better than others, visit the CDC here.

To get approval from your loved one in hospice or palliative care, wear your favorite holiday-themed mask when you visit and bring an extra one for them. Not only will both of you look festive and merry, but the masks will also guarantee that you have more visits in the future to laugh and create memories. 

Keep Your Distance, But Stay Connected

If you have to travel to Los Angeles to see your loved one in hospice or palliative care and it poses many risks, one option for staying connected is to use technology. You can easily do this with video calls or virtual hangouts, and it is so simple to log on and see your loved one’s face. Platforms such as Zoom, Facetime, and Google hangouts are free and very accessible options. 

Although talking and celebrating virtually may not feel like doing it in real life, it is a method of staying connected without increasing the risk to your older loved one’s health. 

Wherever the holidays take you and your family this year, take a look at the CDC’s website for up-to-date guidance and tips for traveling, and always bring along an extra bottle of hand sanitizer or hand wipes. Doing so gives you additional protection against germs, and they make excellent stocking fillers. 

Contact Faith & Hope Hospice and Palliative Care near Los Angeles for information on how hospice and palliative care help patients and their families during the holidays.