Mental health institute stops admitting new patients as outbreak grows
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DANVILLE, Virginia (Danville Register & Bee) — There are now 12 cases of COVID-19 at Southern Virginia Mental Health Institute.
The facility halted admissions of new patients Monday since a third COVID-19 outbreak at the facility last week. That outbreak has increased since five patients and two staff members was initially reported to be infected.
Ten patients are now positive for COVID-19, said Lauren Cunningham, spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. As of Thursday afternoon, five patients were positive for the virus
“Last week, SVMHI was working with the local health department to determine whether closure was necessary,” Cunningham said via email Monday. “The number of cases escalated quickly over the weekend. Taking into consideration the recommendations from the local health department, today we made the decision to temporarily halt admissions to SVMHI to protect the health and safety of our current patients and stuff.”
The department of behavioral health and developmental services oversees SVMHI.
The Virginia Health Department can recommend cessation of patient admissions, but cannot force the facility to stop admitting them, said Pittsylania-Danville Health District Epidemiologist Chris Andrews.
“VDH does not have the legal authority to force a congregate care facility to stop accepting new residents,” Andrews said via email Monday.
The two infected staff members are isolating away from the facility and receiving treatment as needed, Cunningham said.
As for the patients, “SVMHI has isolated existing positive patient cases and is further cohorting patients and staff to limit the opportunity for further spread of the virus,” Cunningham said.
Additional testing for COVID-19 will take place Tuesday, she said.
It is the third outbreak at the facility since July, when four clients and four staff members tested positive for the coronavirus. Thirteen clients and staff members tested positive during a second outbreak in November.
At the time of the second outbreak in November, Andrews said at the time Southern Virginia had gone against the Virginia Department of Health’s recommendations to stop new patient admissions.
Every outbreak at SVMHI is taken seriously and monitored closely by the facility and the department of behavioral health and developmental services, Cunningham said Monday.
“It is really important to understand that every outbreak is looked at individually,” she said. “This is the context with which SVMHI, along with the local health department, makes decisions about whether to continue accepting admissions.”
Last week, the facility was working with the Pittsylvania-Danville Health District to determine whether it was necessary to stop admissions, Cunningham said.
The department of behavioral health and developmental services and the facility will continue working with the local health department to develop a plan to reopen Southern Virginia as soon as it deemed safe to do so, she said.
“The health and safety of both patients and staff is our number one priority,” she said. “At the same time, we do not take the decision to halt admissions lightly and will be working to divert admissions to help ensure the solvency of the safety net of state inpatient mental health services.”
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