COVID-19 Positive Case at the Virginia Veterans Care Center

A staff member of the Virginia Veterans Care Center (VVCC) has tested positive for COVID-19.  Testing was performed on August 3 and the test results were returned on August 12.  The staff member, who last worked on August 2, is at home in self-isolation, and under the care of their personal health care provider.

VVCC has notified residents, family members, and staff of the positive COVID-19 case.

Measures currently in place to protect the health and safety of VVCC residents and staff include:

• VVCC is closed to all visitors. The only exception is for family members to visit a resident in an end-of-life stage, with prior coordination;
• All persons entering the building are screened (temperature taken) and are asked about potential COVID-19 exposure. Persons with a fever or a positive response to the questionnaire are denied entry;
• Residents are screened three times a day (temperature and vitals). Any resident with a temperature above 100.4 or showing other potential signs of COVID-19 exposure is immediately isolated.  A COVID-19 test is conducted upon the direction of the VVCC medical director;
• Resident trips outside VVCC have been cancelled, except for visits to outside medical facilities for medically necessary appointments or emergency room (ER) visits;
• Residents who have been admitted to a hospital must have a negative COVID-19 result that is less than 24 hours old, and must not have been tested or treated on any dedicated COVID-19 wing or isolation unit of the hospital prior to readmission to VVCC;
• All staff who enter a resident room wear masks. If a resident’s condition calls for it, additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), such as gloves and gowns, is worn per Virginia Department of Health (VDH) protocol;
• Staff are following Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) guidelines related to handwashing, using alcohol-based hand sanitizers, covering coughs, and use of PPE;
• Staff who are sick have been directed to stay home and contact their personal health care provider; and
• VVCC continues to follow the latest VDH, CDC, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) guidelines closely.

The Virginia Veterans Care Center (VVCC) is one of two state homes for veterans in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is operated by the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (VDVS).  Located in Roanoke, it is exclusively for veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States.  With a capacity of 224 residents, it delivers four types of care: long-term skilled nursing care, Alzheimer’s/memory care, short-term in-patient rehabilitative care, and domiciliary care.

As of August 14, 2020, there were 187 residents at the Virginia Veterans Veterans Care Center.  Three hundred and eleven staff members care for them.