Nursing Homes
Infection Prevention and Control Practices for Nursing Homes, Assisted Living and Long-Term Care Facilities
Long-term care facilities can take steps to assess and improve their response to COVID-19. Facilities that administer health care may refer to recommended practices for healthcare personnel. In general, however, long-term care facilities whose staff provide non-skilled personal care may refer to community prevention strategies based on COVID-19 Community Levels.
Find Your Your COVID-19 Community Level
COVID-19 Community Level: High
If your COVID-19 community level is high, consider applying the following strategies to mitigate the spread of illness.
- If you are at high risk of getting very sick, consider avoiding non-essential indoor activities in public where you could be exposed.
- If you have household or social contact with someone at high risk for getting very sick, consider self-testing to detect infection before contact.
- Maintain ventilation improvements.
- Avoid contact with people who have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow recommendations for isolation if you have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow the recommendations for what to do if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19.
COVID-19 Community Level: Medium
If your COVID-19 community level is medium, consider applying the following strategies to mitigate the spread of illness.
- If you have household or social contact with someone at high risk for getting very sick, consider self-testing to detect infection before contact.
- Maintain ventilation improvements.
- Avoid contact with people who have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow recommendations for isolation if you have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow the recommendations for what to do if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19.
COVID-19 Community Level: Low
If your COVID-19 community level is low, consider applying the following strategies to mitigate the spread of illness.
- Maintain ventilation improvements.
- Avoid contact with people who have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow recommendations for isolation if you have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
- Follow the recommendations for what to do if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19.
- If you are at high risk of getting very sick, talk with a healthcare provider about additional prevention actions.
Additional Risk Factors
In addition to monitoring COVID-19 Community Levels, facilities may consider factors that would indicate heightened risk, such as:
- A substantial portion of people in the facility are considered high-risk due to underlying health conditions, older age, having certain disabilities, or poor access to care.
- Facility structural and operational characteristics that might accelerate spread, such as a high volume of outside visitors, poor ventilation, areas where many people sleep close together, or resident population’s ability to adhere to COVID prevention strategies.
- Active COVID-19 spread occurring in the facility.
Additional Mitigation Strategies
Facilities may consider implementing the following strategies to mitigate the spread of illness:
- Increase and improve ventilation as much as possible and consider moving activities outdoors, when possible.
- Consult with the health department about testing strategies, including whether to implement routine screening testing.
- Add enhanced cleaning and disinfection protocols.
- Create physical distance in congregate areas where possible and/or reduce movement and contact between different parts of the facility and between the facility and the community, as appropriate.
See more information about setting-specific considerations for COVID-19.
Respiratory swabs (nose and throat) are collected by a health care provider and sent to a private laboratory or one of the state public health laboratories for COVID-19 testing.
Many state-run and local testing sites are available throughout Florida. Some testing sites require an order from a healthcare provider, and for an appointment to be scheduled in advance, though there are a number of sites that will test regardless of symptoms and without an appointment.
To find a testing site near you, click here.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a list of EPA-registered disinfectant products that have qualified for use against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Click here for a list of disinfectant products.