Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Release from Magnolia Manor dated 7/15/20

Magnolia Manor Home Office, Americus, GA, July 15, 2020 –President and CEO Mark R. Todd reported that for the sixth consecutive week, there have been no new resident COVID-19 cases at the Americus Nursing Center.

Todd stated, “We are making real progress. At least, I pray we are and sure hope it continues!”

He is so confident the progress will continue that Magnolia Manor has begun a phased closure of the building’s COVID isolation unit, with the goal being to return the space to its original use as a state-of-the-art rehabilitation facility.

“We hope to be ready when we finally feel it is safe to return to whatever normal will look like. Of course, that will not occur until sometime after the governor’s order is lifted. Meanwhile, we are keeping some of the isolation units in case they are needed.”

Todd also reported that state officials recently completed infection control surveys at all six of the organization’s nursing facilities. All were found to be in full compliance.

“It’s good to have them recognize all of the hard work our team has invested in trying to keep residents—and staff—safe.”

Despite the progress made, Magnolia Manor continues to test residents and staff regularly as a precaution. As people venture out more, Chief Operating Officer Hill Fort indicated they have a greater chance of exposure to the virus. Testing is essential to prevent a new outbreak among residents.

“We will continue using our PPE and other precautions like social distancing, limiting visits and, of course, testing, to try to prevent a new outbreak among our residents. It’s a constant struggle to know how much is enough and when is it too much, but we are trying to return to normal. We know we will be the last group allowed to reopen, but we sure are looking forward to it.”

Todd explained that residents are fiercely independent, so it is difficult for them to be so limited by the precautions taken to help keep them safe.

“These are not punitive restrictions. We aren’t locking residents in:  we are trying to keep the virus out! And we always want to err on the side of safety for both residents and staff—even to our own detriment. We are in constantly changing, uncharted waters with this virus. We think we know what is best, but we are all just speculating on what is the right course of action.”

“All we can do is listen to the experts and follow their advice.”

Thirty-four Nursing Center residents have recovered, and eight have passed away. Twenty-eight employees who previously tested positive have since recovered. However, there are now four new employees who tested positive in the past week.

“We have seen some false positives that were corrected by subsequent testing, but since people are getting out more because they are growing COVID-weary, it’s possible these are new cases. We will monitor each one closely as they isolate at home, and retest to confirm the diagnosis,” said Todd. “These new cases could be a reflection of the recent spike seen here in Georgia and in many communities around the country. We just need to be sure they are not contagious.”

The Columbus East campus has seen one new resident case. Twenty-eight residents are receiving care in-house, and none are hospitalized. Five residents have now recovered. There have been no new deaths this week. Sixteen employees have now tested positive—three new ones this week.

At Columbus West, six residents have tested positive in the past week and are receiving care in-house. Six employees have tested positive—two this week.

At the Columbus Assisted Living program, there have been no new cases reported this week.

Magnolia Manor’s Marion County campus has reported no new resident cases in the past week. Eleven are receiving care in-house, and one is in the hospital. Five have recovered, and there have been no additional deaths. Fifteen employees have now tested positive for the virus, an increase of two over the prior week.

The asymptomatic resident at the Americus Retirement Center has now been cleared, and there have been no new resident or employee cases reported.

Residents at Magnolia Manor South in Moultrie who previously tested positive were retested and found to be negative. A second re-test has been conducted, and the results should be available by the end of this week. Residents continue to show no symptoms. No campus employees are known to have the disease.

The resident at Magnolia Manor on the Coast in Richmond Hill continues to test positive.  There have been no additional resident or staff cases, and all are being retested this week.

The St. Simons Nursing Center has no known positive resident cases, and no new employees have tested positive this week. There also continues to be no know positive resident or employee cases in the campus Assisted Living program.

Magnolia Manor of St. Marys has reported no new employee or resident cases.

One resident has tested positive at the Midway campus in Liberty County. Three employees have now tested positive, an increase of two over the prior week.

Magnolia Manor’s Macon campus and the Mattie Marshall Memory Care program in Americus continue to report no resident or employee cases.

The organization has regularly reported that any staff with symptoms are placed on leave and must be cleared before returning to work. Residents testing positive receive care in a special campus quarantine unit to help control the spread. Strict infection control protocols are utilized across the organization, including the use of PPE.

Magnolia Manor continues to follow all guidelines recommended by the CDC, CMS and the Georgia Department of Public Health.

As a 501(c)(3) faith-based nonprofit, Magnolia Manor welcomes donations, which are tax deductible as allowed by law.

Headquartered in Americus, Georgia, Magnolia Manor is a faith-based, tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization affiliated by covenant with the South Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church. Magnolia Manor was established in 1959 and employs almost 1,000 staff who serve about 1,500 senior adults daily throughout South Georgia. Services at our nine locations are open to all persons, regardless of denominational affiliation. We provide various levels of care, including Independent Living, Catered Care, Personal Care, Assisted Living, Skilled Nursing, Rehabilitative Therapy and specialized Memory Care.