Senior Center survives COVID-19 cases during vaccination delays in Santa Maria
SANTA MARIA, Calif. -- The Country Oaks Care Center owners Sharon and John Henning are calling this month a “wild and woolly” ride.
“Yeah it’s been a difficult time for us," says John.
It started with the director of nursing testing positive for COVID-19 on January 4th along with at least 6 residents and 5 staff members who also tested positive at the Santa Maria facility.
“We had some patients earlier in the month and those patients have recovered," says John.
Then, the care center was supposed to receive vaccinations at the end of December until it got confused with another facility also called Country Oaks.
“Well there is another Country Oaks in Pomona, there was some mixup- but the County came through and now they got the clinic over here. They had nurses come over here to administer the vaccine to our residents,” says John.
Despite the delay, owners at the care center say they’re pleased to finally get their residents vaccinated.
“I think it’s going well. We get our second dose next week as well. Our residents have been all for it. Our families are very supportive,” says Sharon.
The facility was at the center of a deadly COVID outbreak over the summer, but was able to get things under control.
COVID or not, the owners say their number one priority is caring for their residents.
“Our residents as we call them are very important to us. Families trust them to us. It’s up to us to do the best that we can do for them,” says Sharon.
