Authorities refrain from details as coronavirus spreads to Texas nursing homes

At least 320 residents and staff living in Texas nursing homes tested positive for a new coronavirus. At least 18 people have died. And at least 7 nursing homes across 5 metropolitan areas are working on more than 10 infections.

However, these figures, collected by the Texas Tribune from various public health and regional news reports, may underestimate the extent of COVID-19 outbreaks in Texas nursing homes. That’s because, unlike some other states, Texas doesn’t disclose comprehensive data on nursing home residents and sick staff.

Before the outbreak of COVID-19 arrived in Texas, many nursing homes in the state had long records of citations related to poor infection control. And now some of those same nursing homes are experiencing outbreaks.

At one facility in Texas City, more than 80 people and staff have been diagnosed with the virus and are currently being used by physicians Unproven drug President Donald Trump advised to treat the population. At least 78 people were infected at the Lubbock facility and at least 67 tested positive at the San Antonio facility.

Family and advocates in nursing homes require the state to publish the number and name of facilities where coronavirus infection has been reported. Some of the 254 counties in Texas are open, but Texas officials have not disclosed that information.

“Frankly, we hope this information will be released shortly,” said Patti Ducaie, a state long-term care provider. Ombudsman People who support residents of nursing homes.

“Indeed, anyone living in a facility with a confirmed or even presumed case of COVID should be aware of the vulnerable nature of living in that environment,” she said. “And I think a family that can be decision makers … I think they need to know.”

A spokesperson for the Texas Board of Health and Human Services stated that if there were reports of staff or residents who tested positive for the disease, the agency would investigate nursing facilities for compliance with health and safety rules.

“Protecting the health and safety of the people we serve is our top priority,” spokesperson Keriweldon said in an email. “We work closely with Texas long-term and emergency care facilities to ensure that we have the most up-to-date and clear information on the prevention of infectious diseases such as COVID-19.”

Weldon also confirmed that the health committee is tracking COVID-19 cases in state-specific nursing homes, but did not disclose the figures.

According to experts, people with chronic health problems and the elderly are at increased risk of death from COVID-19, making residents of nursing homes particularly vulnerable. According to the Texas Department of Health, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or reduced immunity is associated with poor health.

Texas is not the only country with a large number of nursing home infections. Nationwide, at least 450 deaths in nursing homes have been attributed to the virus as of last week, according to the Associated Press. analysis. Outbreaks in long-term care facilities were reported in all of Washington, Ohio, Tennessee, and Maryland.

But Texas stands out with limited disclosure of information.

In New York, the birthplace of COVID-19 in the United States, a state health department last week report According to the Wall Street Journal, there are more than 1,000 nursing home infections and at least 179 deaths, accounting for almost 15% of the reported coronavirus deaths in the state.

Also, in Louisiana, nursing home deaths, another hot spot for coronaviruses, account for approximately 16% of the state’s deaths, and state officials routinely report the total number of infected residents and deaths. Report. As of last week, the state reported that 60 caregivers had died. But authorities are there Publishing stopped According to local media reports, the name of the nursing home where the cluster of coronavirus infection resides.

In the months since the new coronavirus was first reported in China, inspectors have increased surveillance of facilities with a history of infection control issues, state and federal officials said.

However, even recent tests have found that more than one-third of nursing homes across the country do not follow hand-washing guidelines, and one-fourth have adequate personal protective equipment to limit the spread of the disease. It turned out that there was no. It came as the Trump administration Announced Last week, nursing homes became “viral promoters.”

About 93,000 people live in Texas nursing homes, and the majority of more than 1,200 licensed nursing homes in Texas recently cited inadequate preventive measures against infectious diseases It has been. Inspectors have found problems in more than 80% of Texas nursing homes in the past three years, according to Texas Tribune regulatory records.

Out of 988 retirement homes cited for infection control and prevention, 39 were flagged By government with a history of serious quality issues This year, more frequent inspections and stronger penalties are required. Nationally, Texas has the second highest total number of infection-related citations in the last three years, with the second highest after California in 1,855 and the 11th highest citation rate of any state.

Hard decision for family

Visits have been banned since mid-March in Texas, where loved ones are in nursing homes. order From the governor Greggabot. Many people have called on the state to increase transparency about nursing homes facing difficult decisions about caring for relatives reporting coronavirus infections.

According to state guidelines released this week, nursing homes report cases of coronavirus to the Texas Health and Welfare Commission, and if any “cases exposed, estimated, or confirmed in the facility” occur, residents, staff, You should let your family know. The state has also instructed nursing homes to use a separate staffing team “as much as possible” for those who tested positive for COVID-19.

Velinda Rubio makes several FaceTime video calls each week to keep in touch with her 76-year-old mother who has Alzheimer’s disease and lives in a retirement home in Mansfield. Her mother recently fell and broke her shoulder and had to be taken to a hospital.

Rubio says the state wants to publish a list of nursing homes with known coronavirus infections, especially after local media reports cases at several facilities in nearby North Texas. Stated. She was unable to meet in person, and regularly called her mother’s premises to ask her about coronavirus infections.

On a recent call to the facility, she asked the staff, “Where is the place to post this? Is there an email that disappears?” Rubio said. “They said no.”

“I’m worried,” she said. “When I ask, how can I know this unless they are honest with us?”

For Tammy Benford, video calling was essential to staying in touch with a 75-year-old mother living in Austin Nursing Home.

Her mother who had a stroke and could not talk to her over the Internet connection, nodded or gestured.

“It’s still difficult,” Benford said. “Just looking at her on the phone cannot be hug, touched, or comforted.”

Some civil servants, including Judge Clayjenkins of Dallas County, are encouraging families to remove them from nursing homes to keep them safe from COVID-19.

But experts say these decisions should not be taken lightly.

“What are your resources to take care of that person?” Said Tracy Harrison, professor of nursing at the University of Texas at Austin. “Don’t hurry to make a decision. Can you manage their underlying health problems, and can you keep them quarantined?”

Harrison said that many low-wage nursing home employees work at multiple facilities. She said that nursing homes should ask them to work in only one place to limit the risk of employees transmitting the virus from one facility to another. But doing so comes at a cost to workers.

“To do that you have to make up for their wages,” Harrison said.

Large outbreak

In Lubbock, where the Whisperwood Nursing and Rehabilitation facility is associated with 78 coronavirus infections and five deaths, city officials have issued a quarantine order for the facility and have announced that employees will be prohibited from working elsewhere.

“These residents are really the most vulnerable to us, and it is the elderly who we are trying to contain and control this disease. We want to protect them, “said Wells, Lubbock’s director of public health at the Catherine announcement.

Texas inspectors noted that the facility listed 10 health disorders and received an overall rating of 1 out of 5 during its latest test in 2019. Over $ 7,000 After the resident I have a fracture When staff members try to move them improperly.

However, in the past three years, none of the flaws that Lubbock Nursing Home suffered were due to infection control issues.

No call to the facility was returned. Ah letter The challenge posed by COVID-19, shared by the company’s management company, Creative Solutions in Healthcare Inc., said, “It is different from what we know before.”

“Healthcare, Corp.’s creative solution is a solution that has always proven itself for those who have taken on the challenge with the same responsibilities and are committed to our care,” said the letter.

Texas City’s local health authorities have stated that more than 80 people in one retirement home have been tested for coronavirus positive.

The record is Resort at Texas City Received an overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars, with a total of 10 health disorders in 2019. Last year, Texas averaged about seven. In the past three years, nursing homes have been One infectious disease-related health disorder In 2017, three residents were compromised due to a lack of proper hygiene practices, such as washing hands and wearing gloves.

In San Antonio, local health authorities report 67 cases of coronavirus-related coronaviruses Southeast Nursing Rehabilitation Center, Including at least 8 employees. Local authorities said there were eight deaths associated with COVID-19 at the facility on Tuesday, their manager reveals all deaths until county health workers contacted after local news coverage Did not

The property has been awarded a 1 star rating and has 17 health flaws in 2019. One case involved a patient whose lack of bowel movement was not treated. Patient suffered from feces. As a result, the nursing home was cited as abandoned and fined. Over $ 62,000.

In the past three years, the Southeast Nursing and Rehabilitation Center has received a total of three deficiencies related to the prevention and control of infection. These quotes were not primarily for staff Follow good hygiene practicesincluding Hand washing While Patient care.

A spokesperson for the facility, contacted by phone, declined to comment.

Disclosure: The University of Texas at Austin is a financial sponsor of the Texas Tribune, a non-profit bipartisan news organization partially funded by contributions from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Economic advocates play no role in tribune journalism. Find a complete list of them here.