Coronavirus outbreak at Jackson Memorial nursing home sends seven residents to hospital
Seven residents of a Miami nursing home run by Jackson Health System have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, hospital officials said Saturday night.
The coronavirus outbreak occurred at Jackson Memorial Long-Term Care Center, one of two nursing homes operated by Jackson Health, Miami-Dade’s public hospital system.
Jackson Health said in a prepared statement that the seven affected residents were transferred to the system’s hospitals “for further appropriate monitoring and medical care, despite the fact that most are not symptomatic.”
The hospital system also reported for the first time that three employees of the nursing home have tested positive and are recovering at home. Hospital officials said all employees are using protective gear when working with residents. The residents and their families are being notified of Jackson Health’s remediation plan.
“We are also testing employees of the facility as appropriate, consistent with CDC protocols and the limited availability of test kits in South Florida,” Jackson Health said.
Jackson Health said it was working with the Florida Department of Health and the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration, which regulates healthcare facilities, to implement emergency procedures to protect the other residents and staff, including testing the facility’s other 169 residents.
The hospital system’s statement said Jackson Health has taken precautions in recent weeks to protect its staff and patients from the coronavirus, including restricting all visitors, taking the temperature of every employee as they enter the facility, requiring everyone to wear a mask at all times, and discontinuing all group activities.
The 180-bed home is one of two skilled nursing facilities owned and operated by Jackson Health to help the system’s hospitals discharge patients who cannot be easily sent home or to other community nursing homes because of complex medical conditions.
On Friday, Jackson Health reported on social media that one nursing home resident had tested positive for COVID-19. That patient was showing symptoms of the disease, which include fever, cough and shortness of breath.
Jennifer Piedra, a Jackson Health spokeswoman, told the Herald in an email that the hospital system had followed a protocol it established for containing the virus.
“Upon showing signs of a fever, the patient was immediately isolated and tested, following infection prevention guidelines,” she said. “We have taken every precaution possible to protect our staff and the vulnerable patient population at our nursing homes.”
Florida’s health department said Saturday evening the state now has 11,545 confirmed COVID-19 cases — a jump of 1,277 from the day before — and 195 deaths.
A total of 3,890 confirmed cases have been reported in Miami-Dade, more than any other county. At least 31 people who have died in Miami-Dade tested positive for the virus, the health department reports, and 243 are hospitalized with the disease.
This story was originally published April 4, 2020 at 7:49 PM.
