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The V.I. Dept. of Human Services late Thursday said it would close the Kingshill Head Start location as a staff member has tested positive for Covid-19. The staff member had no contact with any Head Start family members, said the department in a release.
"In an abundance of caution, while DHS works with the Department of Health to get other Kingshill staff tested, that facility will remain closed," D.H.S. stated in its release. "Other Head Start facilities will continue their normal operations. Additionally, meal distribution to students served through that facility will be postponed until after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, resuming, Tuesday, January 19, 2021."
According to the department, with the notification of the confirmed Covid-19 positive test, DHS, in conjunction with the Department of Health, initiated emergency response protocols that include widespread self-monitoring and testing of those who were in direct contact with the impacted staff person, appropriate notifications and continued distancing protocols.
“As cases rise across the Nation and in the Territory, we are reminded that we must be as vigilant as ever in our personal lives and interactions to continue best practice measures to help keep ourselves, family members and those we work with safe,” said D.H.S. Commissioner Kimberley Causey-Gomez.
Steps being taken to mitigate spread, according to D.H.S.:
- Specific staff members of the impacted unit have been advised and asked to quarantine until they get a negative result from testing
- DHS has arranged for testing of all impacted persons within the auspices of DHS through the Department of Health
- Cleaning and sanitization protocols, in line with Department of Health and CDC guidance, have been initiated
