This really sucks....
American Cancer Society closing all 34 of its Hope Lodge locations, including Rochester's
The American Cancer Society is closing the Rochester Hope Lodge amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Residents at the Sandra J. Schulze American Cancer Society Hope Lodge, 411 2nd St. NW, were told late last week to seek new accommodations.
The Hope Lodge offers free housing for cancer patients while they receive treatment at Mayo Clinic.
The American Cancer Society confirmed the closure Tuesday, adding that all 34 of its active locations across the U.S. will be closed.
Officials at the Atlanta-based organization said they had been monitoring the spread of the illness and did not take the decision lightly.
“We’re facing difficult times and difficult decisions,” said Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society. “This is one of many of those decisions we all will have to make.”
As the virus began to circulate via community transmission and with orders to shelter in place issued in multiple states and cities, the nonprofit could no longer guarantee the virus wouldn't spread into one of the lodges, Lichtenfeld said.
Most of the cancer patients staying there have compromised immune systems and are especially susceptible to the virus, he said.
“If the COVID-19 virus came into a Hope Lodge, it would cause immense impact to patients and caregivers immediately,” Lichtenfeld said. “Our guests are a very high-risk group.”
Staff at the Hope Lodges don’t qualify as essential employees where shelter-in-place orders have been issued, he added, making staffing the Hope Lodges difficult in areas where that order is in place, he said.
Sam Stearns and his wife, Geneil, traveled 600 miles from Pope County, Ill., for cancer treatment. They said the opportunity to stay at the lodge has been a relief financially and mentally.
“If we were having to spend our meager savings on lodging, there would be a meter running continuously in the back of my head,” Sam Stearns said.
The couple said they received a good deal at the Centerstone and are relieved lodging won’t be a concern while Sam finishes 21 remaining rounds of treatment over the next few weeks.
He said worrying about finances wouldn't have been conducive to healing. After his remaining treatments, he plans to return to Illinois to continue his retirement career of environmental activism.
The couple packed their car Tuesday afternoon while the remaining guests also departed.
Word came to residents Thursday that they would need to find another place to stay by Tuesday night. About 55 patients were staying at the Hope Lodge when the decision was made, Lichtenfeld said. The Rochester Hope Lodge is one of the busier and consistently occupied of the Hope Lodges operated by the American Cancer Society because of its proximity to Mayo Clinic and the draw it has, he added.
Lichtenfeld said he and other American Cancer Society leaders were watching as the COVID-19 virus began to spread. He said the Hope Lodge staff implemented measures to protect residents, including restricting visitors, limiting vendor visits, and eventually banning guests and asking that they stay in their rooms.
Those measures reassured Don Klontz, of Fargo, who is receiving cancer treatment at Mayo Clinic and was staying at the Hope Lodge. He moved across the street to the Brentwood Inn, where he has stayed before and plans to stay for his remaining nine rounds of treatments for a rare cancer.
“I felt safe there,” he said. “They did a good job.”
Klontz said he feels for the staff who will be laid off due to the closures.
He said staying at public hotels could increase some cancer patients’ exposure to the COVID-19 virus. However, on Tuesday, he noted few visitors at the Brentwood Inn.
“You’ll be glad to have me back,” he said to a clerk there.
Meanwhile, Lichtenfeld said many hospitals and clinics are postponing some procedures and treatments.
“That takes some of the burden off these lodges,” he said, adding that it also means there are other accommodation options for Hope Lodge guests.
Lichtenfeld said he understands the closures will be a burden for some patients and caregivers and not everyone will easily find other accommodations.
“We have other programs and partnerships with hotels,” he said. “But I don’t know if we’ll be able to meet every need … but we hope to meet everyone’s needs.”
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Topic: corona pandemic~ (Read 565889 times)
