In response to the COVID -19 pandemic, while maintaining on-site services for emergency cases, PCA reconfigured its program to reduce health risks to clients, PCA team members, and city partners. PCA immediately purchased essential equipment and technical support contracts which allowed staff to connect remotely with the children and families the Alliance serves. In the Spring of 2020, PCA formed a Return to Work Task Force Team which includes leadership representation from all departments. The team’s goal was and remains to provide guidance to PCA’s workforce in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team relies on CDC recommendations, OSHA, federal, state, and local mandates, as well as employee feedback to develop a comprehensive guide for some essential PCA employees to work safely at the office and for most of the staff to make the shift to work from home.

The core responsibilities of the Task Force Team, which meets regularly to determine needs to comply with laws and mandates, while still supporting children and their families, are to:

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• Establish and implement safety measures and guidelines in compliance with the CDC, OSHA, Federal / state and local mandates and updates as needed;

• Respond to and report employee-related COVID-19 cases;

• Create and implement COVID-19 policies in response to the pandemic;   

• Address employee concerns and questions regarding COVID-19 workplace concerns; and

• Provide ongoing, internal communication regarding COVID-19.

PCA’s immediate response to the pandemic included critical planning and constant communication, leaving PCA with a bright outlook to begin re-emerging and returning to a different type of work environment. PCA was able to maintain business continuity including its FY 21 budget, avoid involuntary attrition due to COVID, and have limited COVID-19 infections impacting the workplace.

Although PCA had a small staff working onsite throughout the pandemic, additional staff have returned onsite in a staggered approach since June 2021. Since then, staff follow a hybrid scheduling approach working onsite 2 or 3 days a week to continue to allow flexibility and safety while they service children and their families. PCA continues to prioritize the safety of their employees and families they support and continues to respond to the constantly changing impact of the pandemic. While PCA is safely increasing on-site operations, the Alliance recognizes the great value in maintaining the virtual program developed in response to the pandemic. Not only will these protocols remain in place for the immediate future, but they will provide a new level of flexibility to care for clients post-COVID. PCA has already begun to implement its enhanced methods of tele-communications into a broader, more aggressive organizational strategy that expands outreach and connections with children and families and provides even greater access to services.