Nursing homes on the East Coast are grappling with whether to evacuate residents during hurricane season, which could pose its own set of health and safety risks amid the pandemic, reports STAT.
The U.S. government requires nursing homes to create and train staff in emergency preparedness annually, but some leaders say the pandemic has sidelined these preparations.
"We have been so entangled with all of the pandemic issues that the conversation never took place," Jude Derisme, vice president of 1199 SEIU, a union representing 400,000 health workers on the East Coast, told STAT. "Where are they going to go? What is the process?"
Evacuating residents during the pandemic poses an entirely new set of challenges for nursing homes. Even deciding where to transfer residents can be difficult, as most hospitals are already overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, and any temporary shelters must be large enough to allow for social distancing. Nursing homes also must ensure they have enough personal protective equipment to protect both staff and residents, whose age makes them more vulnerable to the virus.
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