June 16, 2020 – Moose Jaw Diversified Services collaborating with government and reconnecting with community ahead of re-opening

MOOSE JAW SK – Moose Jaw Diversified Services (MJDS), which provides day services for approximately 125 people in the community, is developing a plan to safely resume services and establish a realistic re-opening date.

“Our first priority is the health and safety of our people – from our service recipients and their families or group homes to the team at MJDS. We want to be able to provide a safe environment for them to come back to,” MJDS Executive Director Mark Belanger said. “We are working diligently with the Ministry of Social Services, and other community-based organizations to ensure appropriate policies and protocols are in place to re-open safely. We are also training staff on these new procedures, working as a team to re-imagine how we operate under new provincial guidelines, and communicating these changes to the people and community we serve in advance of re-opening.”

MJDS is putting the following new protocols in place to ensure a safe space for all upon re-opening:

New infection control protocols and cleaning standards;

Health screening (temperature checks and self-assessments);

Social distancing protocols;

Introduction and use of personal protective equipment;

Bringing people back gradually on different days of the week in smaller groups;

Reduced hours of operation to accommodate new infection control and cleaning protocols;

Designation of specific spaces for small groups;

Designation of specific entrances for coming and going;

Restriction of movement through the building; and,

Restriction on visitors to the building.

“We are following all the recommendations to ensure people are safe, and maybe even going above and beyond those recommendations. It’s a slow process, but it allows us to ensure we are making the right decisions and being thoughtful about the re-opening,” Belanger said.

MJDS staff also are contacting service recipients, families and group homes by phone to find out how they have been coping. In some instances, service recipients are having one-on-one socially distanced visits with staff. Belanger says staff are also taking the time to evaluate every service recipient’s needs and interests in an effort to develop new programming.

“Many of our service recipients have been coming here for years – we’re like a big, extended family. They are used to a specific routine – a routine that will be dramatically different when they return as a result of new guidelines provided by the province to protect against the spread of COVID-19,” Belanger said. “We want to make sure they are prepared for that change when they come back, that we communicate clearly how things will be different, and let them know that they have a choice about when they will come back.”

We want to reassure the community that we will be back. It will look different, at the outset, but we remain focused on our goals of eventually getting back into the community we love.”