Coronavirus updates: Outbreaks in state hospitals; Pierce County sets another single-day record
Updated at 9:35 a.m.
Pierce County reported 276 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday and two additional deaths.
The new deaths involved two Puyallup women, one in her 70s with underlying health conditions and one in her 80s with no known underlying health conditions.
Wednesday’s total for new cases was a new high or the county, breaking the previous record of 223 reported on Saturday.
County totals are now 11,916 confirmed cases and 206 deaths since the first case in the coronavirus pandemic was recorded March 6.
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department has reported 1,951 cases in the past 14 days. The 14-day case rate per 100,000 people is 216.3. Average cases per day over the past 14 days are 139.4.
With a six-day data lag required in the state’s Safe Start measurements, the county’s case rate per 100,000 is 167.5.
There are an estimated 3,149 still-active cases in the county.
According to the health department on Wednesday:
Fifteen new outbreaks were reported the week of Oct. 31, up from 11 the previous week.
Countywide, 44 percent of cases have no link to other cases, up from 41 percent last week.
Testing is available at various sites in the county. For more information on testing sites, go to www.tpchd.org/covidtest. You should seek testing if you have symptoms or if you recently gathered with people from outside your home.
More COVID-19 cases reported among workers at Tacoma hospital after widespread testing
Updated at 9:35 a.m.
An update from St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma shows COVID-19 cases among staff have continued to rise.
A total of 23 workers have tested positive in the rounds of testing conducted in recent weeks.
After an initial outbreak involving 11 employees and four patients in cases tied to the seventh floor, 12 more employees have tested positive in unrelated cases, which the hospital attributes to community spread.
“Contact tracing has found that these cases are not related to the initial outbreak through known exposure to positive staff or patients,” the hospital stated Tuesday.
According to Tuesday’s update: “In the initial response to the outbreak on the seventh floor, a total of 1,100 staff were tested, along with all of the patients on the seventh floor.
“No additional staff or patients have tested positive since the first round of testing related to this incident. On Nov. 9, the seventh floor reopened and all staff who have two negative test results were cleared to return to work.”
Surveillance testing was expanded last week after additional cases were reported with no apparent link to the seventh floor.
That testing included “providers, employees, and contracted staff who were present at St. Joseph Medical Center on or after Oct. 16, including all floors of the South Pavilion and the Tower, all hospital-based outpatient clinics, and Walters Same Day Surgery Center,” according to Tuesday’s update.
The hospital said as of Nov. 9, 3,000 tests have been completed in the surveillance testing.
“All patients and employees are currently being notified of the testing efforts, and test results will be communicated as quickly as possible,” the hospital said. “Notification for any positive results, if received, will be the highest priority.”
Washington state hospital confirms 8 COVID-19 cases, 1 death
Updated at 9:30 a.m.
A hospital in Washington state has reported at least five employees and eight patients tested positive for the coronavirus, after an outbreak on a fourth floor unit of the facility.
The Auburn Medical Center said in a statement Tuesday that one patient died after the outbreak was detected late last week, The Seattle Times reported.
The MultiCare hospital system, that owns the hospital, tested all 40 patients in the unit and 212 staffers who had worked there in the two-week period before the first positive test was reported, officials said.
The hospital received results from all of the patients and 156 staffers, health officials said. It is unclear if some potentially exposed employees were awaiting testing or awaiting results.
All five of the infected employees are recovering and the infected patients are in isolation, officials said.
State health officials have reported 350 outbreaks in health care settings, including hospitals since Oct. 24, a statewide outbreak report said. An additional 706 outbreaks were counted at long-term care facilities over a similar time period.
