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Weekly Message from
LHH CEO Michael T. Phillips
November 24, 2020
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Dear Laguna Honda Residents and Families,
November is Indigenous People’s Month and as many of us celebrate Thanksgiving, it is an important reminder to recognize the myths around the origin of the holiday, and how these myths erase the harm and genocide perpetrated by the early settlers to this country. At Laguna Honda, we are guests on the ancestral homeland of the Ramaytush Ohlone and owe our deepest respects to this community.
Despite all the hardship that we have experienced during 2020, there is still so much for which to be thankful. I am personally thankful to have become part of the Laguna Honda community. I am particularly grateful for this community’s resolve and am proud to serve you and to be entrusted with your care. You are an inspiring group of people and it is a joy getting to know you.
As we all know from seeing the news, the upcoming holiday could not come at a worse time for our community. We are now experiencing a massive COVID-19 surge on the national, state, and regional levels. What distinguishes this surge from the previous surges in the spring and summer is that this one is impacting every state in our country.
The choices made in the next two weeks will determine the duration and severity of this surge. Because the stakes are so high, I have urged all staff to avoid traveling, if possible, and to definitely avoid gathering this holiday season.
At Laguna Honda, we have seen an increase in cases with a total of eight new cases this past week. We now have 105 total cases – 29 resident cases and 76 staff cases. Currently, there is one active resident case and ten active staff cases. COVID-19 dashboards with LHH’s staff and resident case numbers are available online at LagunaHonda.org/COVID19.
Safer Holidays in 2020
We put some of our LHH Leadership Team on the spot, asking what the Thanksgiving holiday means to them and how their celebrations will look different this year. Here’s what they said:
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Chia (10 months) and Juju (3)
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“I try to think of the positive that will come out of a very different holiday season. Traditionally my wife and I visit both sides of our families in Fairfield. It's the perfect mix of Italian and soul food. This year we are not visiting any of our family as safety is more important than our tradition. We will start a new tradition and stay home for Thanksgiving. We will cook nontraditional dishes such as brisket, and duck, with traditional side dishes. I look forward to 2021 being more about family and less about social distancing. My Thanksgiving will be focusing on my two girls and appreciating what I do have, instead of focusing on what I do not.”
– Chauncey Jackson, Director of Environmental Services
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“This holiday season will be different, but safety comes first. My family is preparing for a small Thanksgiving dinner. Our tradition is to order a Honey Baked turkey and ham in addition to my mom’s home cooked meal. Despite not seeing the rest of my family in person, we are fortunate to have the technology we have today. There will be lot of FaceTime sessions on Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping will need to be all online. I don’t mind avoiding the crowds and long lines. Hopefully, next year society will be back to normal. I’m looking forward to a vaccine but most of all, feeling safe for myself and my loved ones.”
– Irin Blanco, Nursing Director and team lead for Contact Investigations
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"We usually go to my brother’s house and spend the day with his family. I make cranberry sauce with orange zest from scratch and baked yams from the Moosewood Low Fat cookbook (though sometimes I add a stick of butter for, you know, flavor 😊). This year we are going to stay at home, possibly go for a hike or beach walk, then Zoom around meal time. I am so grateful for everything I do have—my family, my health, a job that I am happy to come to every day, to live in a city that cares for me as much as I care for it. Since my father passed last year, I have really looked forward to hanging with my brother and his family as much as I can. However, I would like to have many many more holidays with my entire family, and this is what I think of if I start to feel those pangs of not being able to see them. It’s our gift to each other to love one another from afar until its safe for us to be together again.”
– Jennifer Carton-Wade, Assistant Hospital Administrator
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“For as long as I can remember we have celebrated Thanksgiving at my grandparents’ house. I have a very large extended family and my grandparents usually have 50 people over for Thanksgiving. Although, we are going to miss being together we have decided that we all will be spending Thanksgiving with our immediate family members who reside in our households. My grandparents are in their 80’s and we want to first foremost protect them and also each other. It is very difficult not seeing our families. I have not seen my sisters, nieces, and nephew since Christmas 2019. I know how hard it is. We just have to look forward with hope that we will get back to some normalcy in 2021. This year I give thanks for having the opportunity to work with the team here at LHH and the opportunity to serve our residents and patients.”
– Monica Biley, Chief Nursing Officer
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Nawz with Daylan (3) and Darian (5)
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“Each year for Thanksgiving my sister and nephew fly in from Maryland for a weekend of family gatherings and celebration. Traditionally, my family comes together at my cousin’s home in Los Gatos. It is an evening of dancing and laughter. It is a beautiful moment of a large Iranian family coming together to celebrate an American tradition. This year will be very different – it will be the first year without my dad and a celebration with only my two boys and mom. We will facetime all our loved ones and celebrate our steps to keep one another safe this holiday season. There is no question it will be challenging and sad to not all be together, but our health and safety comes first. I hope in 2021 we are all able to come together again, especially for the Persian New Year. Until then, we will continue to do our part to reduce the spread and protect our loved ones.”
– Nawz Talai, Chief Quality Officer
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Finally, I just want to remind you of the insidious nature of COVID-19. Please remain vigilant in protecting yourself against this virus. Thank you for sticking with us as we navigate these challenging times.
Please note, due to the Thanksgiving holiday, I will be connecting with you next on Friday, December 4th. Stay safe and stay healthy.
Sincerely,
Michael T. Phillips, MHA, FACHE
Chief Executive Officer
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