Two residents at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Elder’s Home in Bethel have tested positive for COVID-19 after an employee tested positive for the virus. These are the first confirmed cases of COVID-19 among residents in the facility.
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation operates the Elder’s Home. On Nov. 7, YKHC confirmed that an employee at the facility tested positive for COVID-19. That same day, YKHC tested all 15 residents and all staff for the virus.
The two residents who tested positive are in isolation.YKHC said that the employee who tested positive was not showing symptoms, did not work directly with residents, and followed policies regarding personal protective equipment.
The positive tests occurred on the same day that the state’s coronavirus count set a single-day record at 604 cases.
YKHC will test all residents and staff every three days for the virus for a period of time to monitor the situation in the facility. YKHC said that it will also return to testing residents weekly for the virus, which it did for a few weeks in October after an employee at the Elder’s Home tested positive for COVID-19. It was the first case connected with the facility; no residents tested positive at that time. Before that, the health corporation was testing staff weekly and residents monthly.
YKHC is asking everyone to follow all known protective measures to slow the spread of the virus. “Avoiding gatherings with anyone who does not live in your household, canceling non-essential travel, wearing a mask in public, and washing your hands frequently are all actions that will help to protect the most vulnerable neighbors in our community,” Dr. Ellen Hodges said in a press release. “Although you may feel healthy, you may unknowingly spread COVID-19. Your daily behavior changes will ensure our community is protected from this dangerous virus.”
YKHC has announced 1,139 cases of COVID-19 in the region. Of those cases, 337 are active, meaning they have not recovered. YKHC has hospitalized 12 people in Bethel with the virus. More people have been medevaced from the region for advanced care. Five people in the region have died from complications with COVID-19.
“Without everyone hunkering down and practicing all known COVID-19 precautions, community transmission will likely continue,” YKHC President and CEO Dan Winkelman said in a press release. “Each and every day a community has widespread transmission, it unfortunately increases the likelihood that the most vulnerable will be exposed, with potentially negative outcomes. We as a community can and must do better.”
