Updated Message to Our Community Regarding COVID-19

Update: August 17, 2021

The staff of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties is grateful for the opportunity to provide care for you and we thank you for this privilege. As you know, hospice care is individualized to meet your needs and our staff is always assessing ways to personalize care while dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic safely.

Each staff member is required to understand and to practice infection control measures, but most especially as we all work to reduce real and potential exposures to the COVID-19 virus. Our staff follows Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and New York State Department of Health (DOH) guidelines – but as you know these are ever-changing. You should expect that staff members who provide in-person care will ask many questions of you and the members of your household, as well as potential visitors, around travel and activities of daily living so that we can minimize any potential exposure. Rest assured that we are doing the same with our staff in order to do the same for you.

Each situation is unique, and we fully understand that there is no one size fits all approach and so we ask you to consider the following:

Please attempt to limit in-person visitors as best you can.
Please consider wearing a mask when our staff is in your home. Whenever possible, caregivers should remain six feet away from staff. Visitors in your home should excuse themselves to another room in the home or remain outside while our staff is present. At times you (patient and caregiver) may be asked by our staff to wear a mask while they are visiting. We will always provide a rationale for this request and respectfully ask for your cooperation. We can provide masks should you need them, but rest assured the masks that you are currently using, along with social distancing will suffice.
Hospice staff will always offer options such as a Telehealth visit, or a phone call should you wish to restrict visitors to your home. The only exception would be to provide care that can only be done in person. As always, we will tailor our care to your needs.

We will continue to provide you with any important updates and we strongly encourage you to ask questions of our staff. Hospice’s goal is that you are completely comfortable with us entering your home in a manner that is both respectful of your needs and in compliance with safety measures. Please reach out to us at 845-561-6111 for any further information, clarification, suggestions, or feedback.

Most sincerely,
The Staff and Administrators of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties

Update: November 4, 2020

Each staff member is required to understand and to practice infection control measures, but most especially as we all work to reduce real and potential exposures to the COVID19 virus. Our staff follows Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Department of Health (DOH) guidelines – but as you know these are ever-changing. You should expect that staff members who provide in-person care will ask many questions of you and the members of your household, as well as potential visitors, around travel and activities of daily living so that we can minimize any potential exposure. Rest assured that we are doing the same with our staff in order to do the same for you.

Each situation is unique, and we fully understand that there is no one size fits all approach and so we ask you to consider the following:

Please attempt to limit in- person visitors as best you can. If you are expecting visitors from out-of-state, please refer to the New York State Department of Health website www.health.ny.gov for the latest information and most especially the daily incoming travel advisory.

As of November 4, 2020, travelers must get tested within three days prior to landing in New York, quarantine for at least three days upon arrival and get a test on day four of arrival. If travelers receive a negative test on day four of quarantine, they may exit quarantine when they receive a negative result. States that are bordering
New York continue to be exempt from quarantine protocol. Travelers who were only out of State for less than 24 hours do not need to quarantine but must get a test on day four of arrival back in NY.

Please consider wearing a cloth mask when our staff is in your home. Whenever possible, caregivers should remain six feet away from staff. Visitors in your home should excuse themselves to another room in the home or remain outside while our staff is present. At times you (patient and caregiver) may be asked by our staff to wear a mask while they are making a visit. We will always provide a rationale for this request and respectfully ask for your cooperation. We can provide masks should you need them, but rest assured the masks that you are currently using, along with social distancing will suffice.
Hospice staff will always offer options such as a Telehealth visit or a phone call should you wish to restrict visitors to your home. The only exception would be to provide care that can only be done in-person. As always, we will tailor our care to your needs.

Most sincerely,
The Staff and Administrators of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties

July 16, 2020:
The staff of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties is grateful for the opportunity to provide care for you and we thank you for this privilege. As you know, hospice care is individualized to meet your needs and our staff is always assessing ways to personalize care while dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic safely.

Each staff member is required to understand and to practice infection control measures at all times, but most especially as we all work to reduce real and potential exposures to the COVID19 virus. Our staff follows Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Department of Health (DOH) guidelines – but as you know these are ever-changing. You should expect that staff members who provide in-person care will ask many questions of you and the members of your household, as well as potential visitors, around travel and activities of daily living so that we can minimize any potential exposure. Rest assured that we are doing the same with our staff in order to do the same for you.

Each situation is unique, and we fully understand that there is no one size fits all approach and so we ask you to consider the following:

Please attempt to limit in- person visitors as best you can. If you are expecting visitors from out-of-state, please refer to the New York State Department of Health website www.health.ny.gov for the latest information and most especially the daily incoming travel advisory. Individuals traveling to New York from states with significant community spread of COVID-19 spread are required to quarantine for 14 days. As always, our staff can assist you with this.
Please consider wearing a cloth mask when our staff is in your home. Whenever possible, caregivers should remain six feet away from staff. Visitors in your home should excuse themselves to another room in the home or remain outside while our staff is present. At times you (patient and caregiver) may be asked by our staff to wear a mask while they are making a visit. We will always provide a rationale for this request and respectfully ask for your cooperation. We can provide masks should you need them, but rest assured the masks that you are currently using, along with social distancing will suffice.
Hospice staff will always offer options such as a Telehealth visit or a phone call should you wish to restrict visitors to your home. The only exception would be to provide care that can only be done in-person. As always, we will tailor our care to your needs.

We will continue to provide you with any important updates and we strongly encourage you to ask questions of our staff so that you are completely comfortable with us entering your home in a manner that is respectful of your needs and concerns. and is in compliance with best practice safety measures. We are only a phone call away if you need more information, so please reach out to us at 845-561-6111 for any further information, clarification, suggestions or feedback.

The Staff and Administrators of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties

March 21, 2020:
The leadership of Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties have been closely monitoring the rapidly evolving developments relating to the Coronavirus. Our highest priority is the health and well-being of our patients and staff and we want to let you know the precautions we are taking at this time.

First, we’re responding to the most updated reports from the CDC and from state and local government agencies.
We have significantly increased the frequency of cleaning at all of our administrative offices and our Kaplan Family Hospice Residence, with particular attention to high touch areas, counter tops, bathroom facilities, door handles, seat arms and all points of common contact.
We’ve increased signage around our facilities and are screening both community and residential patients for risk factors.
We are asking our staff to please stay home if they have a cough, cold or fever of any kind, or if they think that they may have been exposed to the virus.

In an abundance of caution, we are restricting traffic in our administrative offices and have temporarily suspended support groups and will limit office visitors to only those who provide essential services. Some office staff will work remotely and the clinical staff will continue to provide services in the community and our Residence.

Expanded Hours

In order to ensure timely response to referrals from our community, we are expanding the hours of operation for our Intake Department beginning March 18, 2020. The new hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 6 pm.

Referrals can be faxed to 845- 561- 5258 or you call the office at 845-561-6111 and the receptionist will direct your call to the Intake Department.

If you wish to make a referral outside of regular office hours, please call 845-561-6111 and our answering service will direct your call to the nurse that is on-call.

For added convenience you can make a referral on line and an Intake Professional will contact you.

Make a referral on line

It is privilege to serve our community and we thank you for entrusting us with your care.

Some helpful reminders for all of us:

Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly and always before eating or drinking. Wash for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, and use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to kill germs.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, mouth, and face with unwashed hands.
Cough or sneeze into your elbow or into a tissue. If you use a tissue, dispose of it in the trash immediately.
If you have cold and flu symptoms, or are not feeling well, please stay home.

We will continue to monitor this developing situation closely and comply with recommendations and instructions from our local and state health departments.

The Staff and Administrators of Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties