Keeping Our Oakmont Family Safe

Oakmont is proud to be one of the first senior communities in the State of Michigan to adopt strict health and safety protocols in our communities and corporate office designed to keep our residents and staff safe during this global coronavirus pandemic. Following the guidelines of local, state, and federal governments, we are proud of our industry-leading precautionary and aggressive measures to keep our communities free of communicable disease.

Reception Staff

Always the front-line staff of our communities, our receptionists took on an even larger role the minute our buildings went under secure quarantine. From performing health screenings for the essential visitors and staff who came into the building to helping to organize and distribute vital communication, Leslie from Oakmont Livonia (pictured), and her colleagues across the Oakmont family provided invaluable help in keeping our communities running smoothly and safely.

 

Housekeeping Department 

Our housekeeping teams, led by regional housekeeping manager Sandy (pictured), has gone above and beyond the call of duty during this pandemic. From absorbing extra hours to learning new state-of-the-art cleaning protocols to keep our communities safe and sanitized, Sandy and her teams have risen to the occasion and raised the bar. From our grateful employees, families, residents, and corporate staff, we thank Sandy and her team for their incredible commitment and accomplishments.

 

Dietary Department

The dietary department has continued to play a huge role in our communities during quarantine and our efforts to keep our residents and staff safe. Our talented group of managers (like Debbie from Oakmont Parkway, pictured here), cooks, servers, and chefs quickly shifted our scratch kitchens from serving three meals a day in our elegant dining rooms to delivering the same outstanding quality right to our resident’s apartments. The personal sacrifice and dedication of Debbie and our other dietary all-stars have been a continued source of inspiration.

 

Activities Department

No position at Oakmont underwent such a drastic change during the pandemic as that experienced by our Activities Departments. Janet (pictured), our Activity Director at Oakmont Manor, and her colleagues at each community went from planning multiple outings, activities, crafts, shows, happy hours, and events each week to thinking up unique and engaging ways to keep our residents happy, engaged, and entertained during months of quarantine. With unique approaches like outdoor entertainment that circled the building to rolling happy hour, library, and snack carts, their efforts have been truly inspiring.

 

Corporate and Auxilary Staff

Audra (pictured) and her colleagues at the corporate and community level began researching, developing, and implementing safety and security protocols at Oakmont Communities before COVID-19 was even present in Michigan. With a strong background in care-oriented senior living, Audra’s seven-days-per-week commitment to working with hospitals, nursing homes, and discharge planners, to ensure all residents entering and exiting the building were doing so safely helped ensure a healthy and safe environment for all.

 


The Steps We Are Taking for Safety

Since before the pandemic reached Michigan, Oakmont began taking swift action to add additional precations to our already rigorous and industry-leading cleanliness and sanitization efforts. Along with stockpiling enough virus-killing chemicals and cleaning products to keep our communities safe weeks before Michigan’s first positive case, we’ve worked hard to develop a company-wide policy of strict rules, regulations, and standards for handling the threat of communicable disease. Below is just a sample of the steps we’ve taken:

In Our Communities

  • Provided COVID-19 testing for all residents, staff, and third-party care provider staff working in the building.
  • Added additional virus-eliminating chemicals and processes to our cleaning regimen
  • Added additional staff dedicated to sanitizing of common areas, frequently used spaces, and high-touch areas
  • Secured communities to prevent non-essential visits and outside visitor traffic.
  • Worked with our vendors to secure a commitment to strict health and safety protocols.

With Our Residents

  • Consistent communications with residents and families about changes in protocols to best protect the community.
  • Socially distanced activities that focus on engagement including happy hour carts, a virtual convenience store for essentials, hallway bingo, uplifting quotes chain, socially-distanced birthday celebrations, pen-pal programs with local students, take-home crafts, Zoom exercise and entertainment, strolling library and puzzle carts, outside concerts and performances by local entertainers, and performances, emergency kit crafting for local at-risk seniors, family video chats, and more.
  • Safe departure and return protocols for medical and emergency appointments outside of the building.
  • Contact-free meal delivery and cleanup

With Our Staff

  • Provided CDC-based education and training on communicable disease safety
  • Provided PPE and personal sanitizing equipment
  • Daily health screenings and temperature checks
  • Maintained an hourly handwashing and sanitization schedule
  • Social distancing protocols from other staff and residents
  • Daily on-site laundering of staff uniforms
  • Meals provided to staff daily to decrease outside exposures

With Our Families

  • Established an emergency texting system to update families on community news
  • Remained in consistent contact with families via text system, email, website, or letters about new guidance and protocols.
  • Worked with families to continue to provide opportunities to recognize special events, milestones, and celebrations for our residents.

The above list represents just a portion of the steps we are taking to keep our communities safe. If you have additional questions about our COVID-19 precautions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.


Look Inside During Lockdown

Just because our buildings are locked down for everyone’s safety doesn’t mean we aren’t having any fun. Take a look through our photo gallery from the last couple of months to see what we’ve been up to.

 

COVID-19 Resources

Current Executive Orders Governoring Senior Living in Michigan

Executive Order 2020-148

Executive Order 2020-136

Emergency Order MCL 333.2253


Centers for Disease Control

Coronavirus Main Page


State of Michigan Resources

Coronavirus Main Page

Testing Information

Michigan DHHS


Macomb County Resources

Coronavirus Information

Wayne County Resources

Coronavirus Information

Oakland County Resources

Coronavirus Information 


AARP

Coronavirus Information and Resources