2022: THE COVID-19 NEW YEAR MARTA SILAKKA RN, BSN, CCM, COHN-S NHADA WCT NURSE CASE MANAGER Who would have thought we would still be writing about, talking about, dealing with, and continuing to be just sick of COVID-19 still in 2022? This is not how we wanted to start our New Year, but working together and supporting our members as the pandemic continues is a priority for us. No member has been untouched by COVID; whether it’s your staff or their families or friends, everyone seems to have a COVID-19 story. The calls for assistance here at NHADA headquarters have diminished somewhat, but we know it’s not because you aren’t dealing with COVID; it’s because we have all become somewhat experts on it. On Jan. 6, 2022, the NH Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public Health Services Bureau of Infectious Disease Control released updated Isolation and Quarantine Recommendations for the General Public. These guidelines are available here: The State of NH did not go with the CDC Guidelines exactly; some areas are different. The biggest difference is with quarantine guides. According to the CDC, persons who are unvaccinated or not “up to date” on receiving all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses (including booster shots) should quarantine for at least five days. Then, they should wear a well-fitting face mask for an additional five days when around other people at home or in public locations after exposure to someone with COVID-19. In contrast to the CDC, the State of NH guidelines recommend quarantine only for household contact exposures. The state recommends everyone exposed to COVID-19 seek testing five days after the exposure. The CDC recommendations are here: Business owners are reminded that the Isolation and Quarantine Recommendations for the General Public are what we all should be following to limit the spread of COVID-19 but remember, you can do more. Use these as the minimum guideline and consider going further; https://www.covid19.nh.gov/sites/g/ files/ehbemt481/files/inline-documents/ sonh/isolation-and-quarantinerecommendations_0.pdf https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/ s1227-isolation-quarantine-guidance.html 14 D R I V E
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