Dear Laguna Honda Residents and Families,

I want to begin by saying thank you – you hear me say it all the time, but Laguna Honda is fighting COVID-19 successfully because of you.  I echo the sentiments that Mayor London Breed shared earlier this week: “If I know anything about this City, we are a resilient City! We can sacrifice this time for a better future.”

While we are still far from that better future and a return to our pre-COVID-19 life, this week marks a positive step forward.

Reopening at Laguna Honda

Laguna Honda, as one of the most vulnerable communities to COVID-19, must remain on a more cautious trajectory. However, we were able to open five of our clinics this week: dermatology, plastic surgery, optometry, orthopedics, and podiatry. (Dentistry and minor procedures remained open throughout the pandemic.)

We are also excited to announce that the Salon and Barbershop are opening on Monday, September 21st. We are all eager to be done with our “quarantine cuts” and fortunately, at Laguna Honda, we have a great team of beauticians.

Color-Coded Outbreak Control Measures

Finally, I want to share important updates to our COVID-19 outbreak control measures. As we learn more about the virus and work closely with our partners at the local, state, and federal levels, we continue to adapt our response to best protect the LHH community.  Please see a short summary of the changes and if you have further questions, your Resident Care Team can provide support:

• Neighborhoods will either be on Green Level or Amber Level
• Green Level is our baseline and it means no recent cases and no extra precautions beyond our hospital-wide measures like masking.
• Amber Level means there was a recent COVID-19 case on the neighborhood and that certain additional measures need to be taken to slow the possible spread of the virus. Most of these measures relate to staff practices but we do ask residents on Amber Level to refrain from leaving the unit and to avoid social gatherings. Amber Level often lasts two weeks. 
• This means no neighborhoods, aside from the designated COVID-19 unit will be locked due to a COVID-19 case.  

• When there are no COVID-19 positive residents on South 5, or any recent staff cases, South 5 will be on Standby Red.
• Standby Red looks a lot like Green Level and means residents can leave the unit and attend social gatherings.
• If a COVID-19 positive resident is moved to South 5 or someone on the unit tests positive, it will be on Red Level. 
• Red Level means the unit is locked and on quarantine until the resident recovers and returns to their home neighborhood.

Six months into the pandemic, we know that certain measures are necessary to keep us safe and slow the spread of COVID-19. We also know that others are not. These updates seek to maintain our effective response measures while eliminating those that are no longer needed.

Updated COVID-19 Numbers

At Laguna Honda, we have had 88 total COVID-19 cases since our first known case in March—25 resident cases, of which 23 have recovered, and 63 staff cases, of which 62 have recovered.

COVID-19 dashboards with LHH’s staff and resident case numbers are available online at LagunaHonda.org/COVID19

Please continue to help us fight this virus by social distancing, wearing a face covering, and washing your hands frequently.

If you have any questions about LHH’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic or the safety and wellness of our community, your Resident Care Team is available.

Please keep healthy and safe.