A Louisiana retirement community with 12 coronavirus patients limits visitations and says residents can’t leave property grounds
A retirement community in Louisiana has 12 residents who have tested positive for coronavirus, and several others are awaiting their test results in isolation, a spokesperson for the facility told CNN.
The Lambeth House, which has 268 residents, was allowed to do on-site testing of residents by the CDC on Thursday, and has tested 26 so far, spokesman Greg Beuerman said. Of those, 17 are in isolation at the facility, one is isolated at their family’s home, seven are in the hospital and one patient has died.
Some test results are still pending, but so far 12 residents have tested positive.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said “older adults” and people with severe chronic illnesses are more likely to become severely ill from the virus. Concern has especially been directed at nursing homes, where in some cases coronavirus has spread to staff and residents. A National Emergency declaration has imposed restrictions on visitations.
The Lambeth House has implemented screenings throughout the facility. Everyone from employees to vendors including FedEx and the US Postal Service gets screened before entering the center and their temperature is taken, Beuerman said. Residents receive telephone checks and temperature checks every day from staff, he said.
Since Friday, all residents have been prohibited from leaving the property, guests have been barred from visiting in apartments and amenities have been closed, the website said.
The epicenter of the outbreak
Friday also began a nationwide temporary restriction of visits to nursing homes in attempts to curb the spread of coronavirus. The administration limited all visitors, volunteers and nonessential personnel with few exceptions, such as end-of-life situations.
Many of the US coronavirus cases in Washington state are associated with the Life Care Center in Kirkland. The state has reported 48 deaths from the virus and 29 are confirmed to be associated with the center. Several other nursing homes in the state have also reported cases.
As nursing homes have enacted precaution and turned people away, loved ones have tried creative methods like signs and yelling outside buildings to get information and communicate to the residents.
And as nursing homes have been advised to keep visitors out, the CDC has been encouraging older people and people with severe chronic medical conditions to “stay home as much as possible.”
“This ought to be top of mind for people over 60, and those with underlying health problems,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University professor and longtime adviser to the CDC. “The single most important thing you can do to avoid the virus is reduce your face to face contact with people.”
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly described Lambeth House. It is a retirement community.
