COVID-19 and the concerns of social distancing and minimizing potential spread has created a new challenge in our treatment community. As a healthcare provider, Launch Centers is encouraging everyone to follow best practices associated with “Safe at Home” guidelines, social distancing, and CDC Guidelines for Healthcare related to the virus.
Our focus has been to ensure the health and well-being of our clients, staff, and alumni. Launch Centers has re-opened and is currently operational and providing in-person treatment. We are also working closely with other treatment facilities to ensure continuity of care for existing clients and those who are seeking placement with a treatment program.
The need for quality treatment to continue despite recent events is key. Launch Centers continues to prioritize our clients and their mental and behavioral health treatment through in-person care. Whether you are a current client, seeking help for a loved one, or just need someone to talk to, we encourage you to call us. We are forever committed to supporting you or your loved ones in any way we can.
The following are the processes and procedures that have been established. We will continue to evaluate these and will adjust accordingly.
INDIVIDUAL / PERSONAL PROTECTION
We want all employees and clients to feel safe at Launch Centers. Therefore, we will:
➢ Require that everyone entering the office has a mask. You are welcome to wear your own face mask of choice that is within professional guidelines. For those that do not have a mask, a disposable mask will be provided.
➢ Honor the request made by staff to be able to see client faces, all clients will be provided a clear face shield.
➢ Require that everyone entering the office (staff and clients) has their temperature taken and recorded.
➢ Require that everyone entering the office will complete a daily questionnaire confirming they are symptom free.
➢ Encourage all to follow the guidelines regarding hand-washing and will continue to have hand sanitizer readily available in all rooms of the office. Additionally, we will have disposable gloves available for those that want hand coverage.
➢ Rather than the self dispensing containers of food, we will have sealed snacks available for our clients. These snacks will be handled by an employee wearing protective gloves.
CLEANLINESS STANDARDS
We want to provide an environment that is clean at all times and have taken the following steps to ensure this:
❖ New daily cleaning processes and procedures have been developed and cleaning supplies will be readily available.
➢ Checklists for all rooms in the office at the start and end of the day.
➢ Checklists for steps to follow between sessions.
❖ The building management company has provided their commitment of new procedures that include daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning tasks.
INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP SESSIONS
Having in-person sessions with our clients is an important factor for their on-going treatment. Therefore, the following measures have been established that allow us to have connection with our clients in a safe manner while maintaining the appropriate social distancing guidelines.
❏ Clear plexiglass dividers have been set up in the individual session rooms. In addition to wearing masks, this will provide additional protection between therapists and clients.
❏ Group sessions will be set up to ensure the recommended six (6) feet between individuals is met. Therefore, the in person group count will not be any larger than ten (10) individuals (including the group facilitator) in person. There is the possibility of additional clients attending virtually, which will be facilitated through the television in the group room.
EMPLOYEE ILLNESS
We want everyone to remain healthy; however, should you find you have any sickness symptoms, the following protocol will need to be followed.
● If you are experiencing any symptoms or sickness such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills or fatigue, we ask that you not attend therapy. It is recommended that you contact your healthcare provider for guidance for your symptoms and contact your supervisor to determine and assess your personal situation.
● Should you arrive to Launch Centers and have a 99.3 or higher fever, or any of the above symptoms, you will be asked to return home.
● Employees or Clients who are well, but who have a sick family member at home with COVID-19 should notify management immediately.
● If you receive a positive test for COVID-19, or are placed off work by a healthcare provider, you will need to provide a certification (i.e. doctor’s note).. We will want you to focus on getting well, so you can return to treatment.
REMOTE SESSIONS
While we have been able to manage through these unprecedented times working on a remote platform, we are excited to get back to working with our clients in a face-to-face manner. If we find there are clients who are unable to be onsite, we will have these clients join individual and group sessions remotely.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding our COVID-19 protocols, please feel free to contact us or give us a call at 424-270-9860
