Step Inside the Ground Zero of COVID-19: Nursing Homes

Story published: April 21, 2020

A majority of the coronavirus cases and deaths in Minnesota have been in nursing homes - yet, the state's stats are better than many parts of the nation. One local nursing home has just earned the all clear, meaning no more COVID-19 cases. We spoke with Dan Lindh, President of Presbyterian Homes, one of the largest longterm care companies in the state, with 48 campuses and more than 8,000 residents served in their communities.

"We’ve had 16 positive COVIDS in three communities," Lindh says, adding, "We’ve had five fatalities." The elderly are more susceptible to contracting the virus and tend to suffer worse outcomes when they do. The longterm care leader says that, between assisted living and nursing homes in the state, the total population is about 75,000, with about 120 diagnosed with COVID in those communities by mid-April, which is just .2 percent infected.

When asked how Minnesota compares to other national hot spots such as Washington State and New York, Lindh says he believe our efforts are paying off. "At this stage of the pandemic [in Minnesota], about 50 percent of the care centers are showing a positive. New Jersey would be a high one, where about 90 percent of the care centers and care communities would have a positive. Minnesota's numbers are considerably lower, and I attribute that to a combined effort of early distancing and decisive action by the state."

Editor’s Note: As the COVID-19 crisis unfolds in Minnesota, certain details in our stories about the impact of the virus may become outdated within hours, days or weeks of our publication. For the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in Minnesota, please visit the websites for the Office of Governor Tim Walz and Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan or the Minnesota Department of Health.

Karie Cronin, the Director of Nursing at Johanna Shores, gave us a rare tour remotely inside the Arden Hills home that was just cleared of COVID-19 cases. She said that the feeling of getting the all clear here is incredible - but the quiet hallways, normally bustling with visitors and residents, is tough. "It’s so sad. It’s hard, it’s hard on everybody to have the hallways this empty."

Finding workers to do the difficult tasks at low pay - tasks regulated by the state - has been an issue we've tracked for some time. My brother, Rob Lahammer, an executive with Presbyterian Homes, worked to get us inside nursing homes during these tough times and, in the past, has been in stories about the challenges of finding and retaining workers.

"Workforce is a significant issue during COVID. And I just want to say a special thanks to our employees who are showing up in remarkable ways. Their resiliency, their sense of empowerment, their sense of 'I own this and I can do it.' We're doing this for the societal good, and we're going to deliver," Lindh says.

In recent weeks, we've heard a lot of concerns about access to longterm care facilities, and Minnesotans wonder when family members may be able to visit their loved ones. "We are trying not to project that. What we are saying is that we’ll be in lockstep with the Department of Health. Internally, we think it will be a while longer, and we'll be working with the state for safe visits," Lindh reports. He points out that he hasn't seen his own mother in a Presbyterian Homes facility for more than a month, though his son, who was recently married, brought the occasion to her, right outside her window.

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