Assisted living center sees virus outbreak
Two people have died and 26 have tested positive in a COVID-19 outbreak reported at an assisted living center in McMinnville as the coronavirus continues to surge in Yamhill County.
As of Thursday, there were 483 cases in the county, with 10 new cases reported on Thursday. There have been 13 deaths.
The number of new cases in the county has doubled in less than a month, increasing from 241 cases on July 20 to 483 on Aug. 13. Half occurred in McMinnville. Three more deaths were reported in the same time period.
The outbreak at Rock of Ages Valley View Retirement Village has been challenging, Director Delvin Zook told the News-Register. The facility is testing staff and residents weekly, and has divided the care center, to separate COVID-19-positive patients from those who test negative.
“The residents are doing fairly well. Most are asymptomatic,” Zook said. “We just pray our staff will hold up. It’s quite strenuous on all of us, but the good Lord’s pulling us through, so we are moving forward.”
Statewide, health officials said the rate of new infections declined slightly last week, with 2,122 new cases reported between Aug. 3 and 9, compared to 2,278 the previous week. There were 29 deaths reported, which the state noted was a drop from 39 deaths the previous week.
It said the percentage of positive tests also declined slightly, to 5.4%, while hospitalizations remained the same.
As of Thursday, there were 22,300 cases statewide, and 383 deaths.
Comments
Hibb
Our hearts and prayers go out for these poor ones...
Years ago I had the displeasure of seeing one of my loved ones in a care facility. What was supposed to be a temporary stay turned permanent after falls caused first one hip and then the other to need to be replaced. It was devastating to our close-knit family and for two years I made the trek there to see her every day until at last she died.
My experiences in dealing with care facilities and such left a sour taste in my mouth, but I would not trade one day. Our seniors are often relegated to silence as they are often forgotten or just have outlived everyone else. They need (and deserve) our attention. The COVID-19 battle has saw even more of them alienated away from their family, friends, and loved ones. It would of been unbearable if during the final months of my relative's life that I was unable to see her due to a pandemic.
God help us all!
Joel
Well said, Hibb. Well said.