The state mandated COVID-19 testing of all West Virginia nursing home residents and employees was completed last week at Sundale Rehabilitation and Long Term-Care in Morgantown and turned up a handful of new cases, including the facility’s admissions, marketing and activities director.
Dr. Carl Shrader, Sundale’s medical director who is also a WVU Medicine physician, said Donna Tennant is self-quarantined in her home, but is still working.
“She participated in a Zoom meeting,” said Shrader during a briefing with reporters Tuesday outside the facility.
Shrader said of the original 33 tested March 24 for the novel coronavirus, 11 — residents and staff members — remain positive, while 18 are now negative. Four Sundale residents, all with underlying health conditions, died as a result of the coronavirus.
“This shows 62% have recovered,” Shrader said.
Eight of the residents who remain positive have been positive since March,but have shown no signs of the virus, he said.
In the five weeks since the initial round of tests, Shrader said, 34 residents, 14 Sundale employees and four employees from Odyssey Rehabilitation have tested positive for a rate of 20%. The most recent test results show 16 residents still have the virus, while 14 have recovered. Fifteen of the positive residents remain at Sundale, while one resident who has dementia is at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital.
Odyssey personnel returned to the facility last week to work with the residents, with the exception of those who are positive and in isolation.
Ten Sundale staff members have recovered from COVID-19, while seven employees and one worker from Odyssey are still positive, Shrader said.
Out of a total of 52 cases — residents and employees — 24 have recovered, 24 still have COVID-19, plus the four resident deaths. Shrader said a COVID-19 patient in Sundale’s hospice unit is critical.
The average age of a Sundale resident is 85. Shrader said the facility typically has five deaths a month.
“We had five in March and eight in April so far, including four from COVID,” he said.
Shrader said they will test again today and in a week. He added none of Sundale’s nurses have become infected with COVID-19.
“I am optimistic,” he said. “Our staff has done a great job.”
There are 1,095 confirmed cases out of a total of 41.526 tested for the coronavirus in West Virginia for a positive rate of 2.64%, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services Tuesday afternoon. Statewide, the virus is responsible for 38 deaths statewide.
In Monongalia County, there are 102 confirmed cases, while Preston now has 13 confirmed cases and Marion County has 45.
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