Source:
http://granthealth.org/updates-for-covid-19-in-grant-county/
[h=1]Updates for COVID-19 in Grant County[/h]
Updates for COVID-19 in Grant County will be posted as information becomes available.
[h=4]March 5, 2020 – 11:30am[/h]
COVID-19 Test Presumptive Positive in Grant County Resident
at Central Washington Hospital; Patient at Samaritan Hospital Negative for the Virus and Quarantines Lifted
GRANT COUNTY, WA – GCHD was notified late Wednesday evening that a Grant County Resident being treated for possible COVID-19 at Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee is presumptive positive for the virus. Testing was conducted at the University of Washington and is waiting for confirmation at the State Public Health Lab. The patient is isolated in critical condition.
If confirmed, this will be the first case of COVID-19 from Grant County, and the first detection of COVID-19 on the east side of our state. The individual, a resident of Quincy in their eighties, did not report any recent travel outside the county, indicating the illness may have been acquired locally. Those who had close contact with the patient have been asked to quarantine. The investigation for the source continues.
The patient tested for COVID-19 from Samaritan Hospital was negative and quarantines for those exposed to that patient were lifted. See Samaritan Hospital’s release here:
https://bit.ly/32XAAcn
These two patients are the ones reported as possible cases earlier in the week. Currently, there are no new patients from Grant County under official investigation of COVID-19, but we expect that to change as this global situation continues to evolve.
On the west side of the state, cases of COVID-19 continue to rise—39 cases total, 10 deaths—and it is likely that more cases will be confirmed in our communities in the future. GCHD, together with its healthcare, emergency management and law enforcement partners, has been working aggressively to respond to this threat. However, help from everyone is needed at this time to slow the spread of COVID-19 in our communities and reduce the number of people impacted.
GCHD is asking that the public do their part to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 by doing the following:
• Call ahead and do not go to the emergency room unless seriously ill. Emergency rooms need to be able to serve those with the most critical needs. If you have symptoms like cough, fever, or other respiratory problems, contact your regular doctor first.
• Stay home when sick and limit close contact with others in your household who are not sick. • Even if you are not ill, avoid visiting hospitals, long term care facilities or nursing homes to the extent possible. If you do need to visit one of these facilities limit your time there and keep 6 feet away from patients.
• Practice excellent personal hygiene habits, including handwashing with soap and warm water, coughing into tissue or elbow, avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
• Stay away from people who are ill, especially if you are 60 and older or have underlying health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, lung disease, or a weakened immune system.
• Limit your interactions and practice social distancing. Work with your family, workplace, school and the rest of the community to limit your activities in the upcoming weeks.
• Stay informed. Information is changing frequently. Follow GCHD on Facebook and check our website regularly for updates.
Who Should Be Tested for COVID-19
We know many people are wondering, if they have fever and a cough, do they need to get tested for COVID-19? Right now, our state lab still has limited capacity to run these tests and are prioritizing the tests for people with underlying health conditions or serious illness. The University of Washington has also recently started testing and additional testing options may become available in the future, but, for now, if you have mild symptoms (cough, fever), you need to stay home, stay away from people. A test, whether it’s positive or negative, won’t change that advice or treatment plan...