Covid FAQS – Sevenanda

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OUR PRECAUTIONARY DECISIONS ARE MADE TO KEEP OUR MEMBER-OWNERS/ CUSTOMERS/VENDORS and STAFF AS SAFE AS POSSIBLE AS COVID ADAPTS!!!!

We hope the information below is helpful. If you have any further questions, please direct them to info@sevananda.coop.

If you haven’t been receiving our email updates or are not on social media, please be sure to subscribe and or send your email address and phone number to sharlise@sevananda.coop or cheranna@sevananda.coop to receive additional updates regarding our ongoing products, services, essential living video series, virtual dialogues, Board Meetings or member-owner engagement and more. Thanks for your patience, understanding, appreciation, and for supporting your local community co-op. Be Safe and Be Well.

We look forward to the day when COVID-19 or other threats to our health and well-being and communities are long behind us.

If you are a staff member, please forward your questions to maggie@sevananda.coop

Thank you for your courage, commitment, and love for Sevananda. It shows and we love you too.

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These are signs we have out front.

Please do not enter Sevananda premises if:

you have tested positive for COVID-19,
If you have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, or
If you have symptoms of the coronavirus as listed on the CDC website.

If you believe you have been indirectly exposed, then please follow CDC and OSHA recommendations on getting a medical screening, self-monitoring, self-quarantining, wearing masks, and washing hands. Also, schedule a virtual consult with a Sevananda wellness warrior for information on our great products to build immunity and strengthen all body systems.

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QUESTION and Answer 1

Who has tested positive and how do I know if I came in contact with them?

Sevananda protects the identity of an individual who has tested positive pursuant to the American Disability Act. It is difficult to pinpoint exact moments of exposure, but we do contact tracing as recommended by the CDC and notify those that have been directly exposed to a staff member who tested positive. In this particular case, the staff member has a definitive sense about who they had contact with at Sevananda, and they know where and when they likely contracted the coronavirus. They had contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19 off premises and they were not back onsite after this exposure. However, because this virus is new, changing and adapting all the time, we cannot 100% guarantee this is conclusively the case. The additional steps we have taken are an added precaution for those potentially exposed indirectly, for those who continue to serve here, and for those we serve coming through our doors every day

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Question and Answer 2:

What additional measures has Sevananda taken to protect staff, shoppers, and our community in this particular case and beyond?

Following CDC and OSHA recommendations
Positive Tested candidate was already disembarked from the Sev ship once they tested positive and has not returned
Candidates that have had direct exposure to the positive tested candidate were also disembarked from the Sev ship
Store closed for the viral dissipation period recommended by the CDC
Store, Warehouse, and Admin area had a COVID cleaning in addition to normal monthly COVID cleaning schedule.
To minimize spread of the virus on surfaces that require contact, we have begun upgrading our restrooms to touchless. We have upgraded the faucets in June and will continue with the soap, hand towel dispensers and commodes over the next few months as sales revenue allows for this extra unplanned expense.
We have taken great care to also improve our air quality with germicidal UV light upgrades to our return air and general HVAC systems.
Although staff are wearing masks, they are also encouraged to take frequent fresh air breaks, to balance their personal carbon dioxide to oxygen ratio intake in addition to the standard internal and external ratios that exist everywhere. Per our information the current ratio time we wear masks or the traditional shopping duration time isn’t enough to create unsafe conditions. However, fresh air breaks and our other air quality measures are the Sevananda standard at this time.
Hand washing through out the day, gloves worn on the sales floor and as much as possible in other areas are also standard.

Question and Answer 3:

What steps can I take to protect Sevananda staff and co-customers?

Sevananda takes pride in being a vanguard of health and wellness by providing products and services which support vitality, vibrance, and optimal health. We understand there is much conflicting information and misinformation available so we do our best to stay focused upon what we know. At the same time, we are protecting our staff, our customers and ourselves legally by following the CDC and OSHA guidelines and recommendations.

There is nothing stopping us from continuing our mission to Empower the Community to Improve its Health and Wellbeing through Blissful Service, so COVID or no COVID, we’ll strive to maintain and sustain our mission. We trust that amidst this climate and uncertain times, we can still encourage our Sevananda family to build your immunity and strengthen your body systems to operate at optimum capacity. Watch Sevananda’s Essential Living videos at sev.coop beginning July 15th, which features educational videos on Living Essentially and Owning Your Health during this time and beyond. Our wellness warriors are here to serve, support, and protect the health of our community. You can also give us a call to schedule a virtual consult. We can’t diagnose or recommend, but we can support your process of owning your health.

Please support us in protecting an environment we hold sacred. Please limit entry to the store if you have cold or flu-like symptoms or if you have had contact with someone that has tested positive for COVID in accordance with CDC guidelines. Use our online ordering service and if you can’t find what you need in the online store call us and we’ll try to put it together for you. Continue to self-monitor, wash hands, wear masks, and conduct temperature checks to be safe and protect others. If there is a major concern go ahead and take a COVID-19 screening or test to confirm any symptoms you may be experiencing.

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Question and Answer 4:

How many COVID-19 positive cases has Sevananda had?

This is our first case of COVID-19 and we’re grateful that it was reported to have originated off premise. There are still many unknowns about COVID-19 and it appears to be adapting. We will continue to take the same steps recommended, while assessing each case for added measures if we deem it necessary to add additional layers of protection, should another arise. From February – June (and reported possibly earlier), there is more to learn about this very unpredictable virus. As such we’ll continue to adapt as best we can to COVID-19’s changing wake and do all we can to protect staff and shoppers as it evolves.

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Question and Answer 5:

How are those who have been indirectly exposed handled?

Unfortunately, businesses do not have complete control over potential instances of indirect exposure, every instance that may occur, or every room or environment in which they occur. As an essential business, everyone who serves here is exposed to indirect and direct contact potentially all the time. However, we work to continuously create layers between Covid 19 and us, reset the environment as often as possible and prevent any spread with the following steps, if we become aware of a concern within our Sevananda family.

Once Sevananda has been notified of a positive test, the candidate will disembark from the Sev ship, if not already off premise when notification takes place. Then contact tracing is immediately facilitated to find anyone that may have had direct exposure to the candidate. Those directly exposed to the positive candidate also disembark from the ship to prevent further spread. Next we reset the physical environment by utilizing plant based, non-toxic, anti-viral, fogging process to decontaminate all surfaces within our building, thoroughly disinfecting the premises as recommended by the CDC. To ensure the virus is gone, we go the extra mile of the COVID-19 cleaning before reopening and allowing staff back on the premises. Finally, we allow the environment to rest for the recommended dissipation time for the virus to release from inanimate objects.

Question and Answer to Question 6:

Why is your admin team all quarantining even though this case may have originated offsite?

Our approach to COVID-19 has always been to create layers and layers of protection when engaging with each other and especially when engaging with our community. We want to continue to be here longer after COVID-19. So, in some instances our response may appear extreme. The scientific community still can’t explain much of what occurs with the transmission of the coronavirus and certainly don’t know everything there is to know about COVID-19. We didn’t ask to be in this situation, nor do we have the playbook as an essential business. Outside of the recommendations, we have the freedom to choose how we will respond to each case. We choose to be as safe as possible. To that end, we believe that this case originated off site, but we still took the recommended measures as if it was on site and added a few more layers to increase safety for our staff and customers. We will next be implementing temperature checks for staff and if numbers continue to climb in our communities, we’ll implement temperature checks for shoppers also. If we have the means to support our fellow staff members and community in this way, it is prudent for us to do so. In keeping the community safe, we keep ourselves safe and we keep you safer.

Question and Answer 7:

Why were you closed Wednesday July 8th?

We did not have another positive covid 19 exposure on this date. We just took additional precautionary measures to close and reset the physical building due to a potential exposure not a positive exposure. Potential exposure and any direct trace are quarantining and we are maintaining staffing as best as possible. After an additional covid cleaning to restore a viral-free environment, we reopened Thursday July 9th.

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