Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March, Mercy has tested our symptomatic caregivers and has tested for surveillance of COVID-19. To date, the positivity rate of our Mercy caregivers has remained lower than other entities across the state and nation. I am so proud of our caregivers who have come together to keep our positivity rate low, and admire their dedication to the safety of each other, our patients, visitors and community.
Mercy’s low instance of positivity among our associates, advanced practice providers and physicians could not be maintained without the hard work and dedication of all of us. Special recognition goes to the following:
- Our Environmental Services (EVS) team has always taken exceptional pride in the work they do. This is evident when you enter any one of our facilities. Since the start of the pandemic our EVS team is working even harder. When cleaning one of our COVID-19 rooms, our EVS personnel wear full protective gear with the goal of eliminating viruses and germs to protect caregivers, patients and all who enter. While standard cleaning in common areas (nurse’s stations, the Emergency Department and visitor areas) occurs daily, since the pandemic began, our EVS team has conducted this same thorough cleaning multiple times a day. While the role they play in fighting this pandemic is different than that of our frontline nurses, physicians and advanced practice providers, it is no less important, and we are indebted to this dedicated team of professionals for keeping our caregivers as safe as possible when at work.
- Our Occupational Health team truly lives our Centura Health vision of “every community, every neighborhood, every life - whole and healthy” and has played a vital role in keeping our caregivers, patients and visitors safe. This team performs in-depth contract tracing when a caregiver receives a positive result. They work closely with associates to ensure they are educated, remain quarantined for the recommended amount of time, return to work only when it is safe to do so, and thoroughly address questions and concerns. In addition, they have been instrumental in setting up and running our vaccine clinics. I am excited to share that to date Mercy has vaccinated 1,457 caregivers and community partners. This team’s dedication to ensuring the whole health of our associates through this pandemic has been inspiring and heartfelt.
- Every one of our caregivers has willingly taken extra precautions throughout the pandemic. Their adherence to the precautions Mercy has established including social distancing, common area capacity limits, screening upon entry, frequent hand washing and more, has been paramount in keeping our positivity rate low.
It is because of the combined efforts of all our caregivers that, of those associates who have tested positive for COVID-19, very few can be remotely associated to potential exposure at work.
The unwavering dedication of our Mercy associates to the safety of each other, our patients, visitors and community is nothing short of awe-inspiring and I am so grateful to be part of this incredible team.
