Fourth person from Orange County nursing home dies from the coronavirus
Four people from an Orange County nursing home have now died from COVID-19 since the first two cases of the disease were reported at the facility on April 2, according to Kristin Prelipp, the county’s communications manager and public information officer.
A resident at PruittHealth-Carolina Point in Durham, died on April 10, Prelipp told The News & Observer on Saturday. The person was in their 60s, according to a release from the county.
The death is the second reported in Orange County since the first person in the state tested positive for the coronavirus on March 3.
The News & Observer reported Friday that three residents from the same PruittHealth-Carolina Point nursing home had died from complications of the virus, while 86 people, including 66 residents and 20 staff members, had been infected. Only one of the first three residents who died, was from Orange County.
The other two nursing home residents who died lived in other counties before coming to the facility. The three earlier deaths occurred on April 3, April 4 and April 8, the N&O previously reported.
“COVID-19 continues to take a toll on our community,” said Quintana Stewart, Orange County’s health director, said in Saturday’s release. “We are heartbroken to announce this second COVID-19 related death and our thoughts are with the family at this time.
“Sadly, we believe that this will not be the last time that we are confronted with this kind of information.”
In an interview with the News & Observer Friday, Stewart said nine PruittHealth patients were hospitalized.
PruittHealth is one of two Orange County nursing homes trying to contain ongoing outbreaks. Signature Health at Chapel Hill reported 31 positive cases of COVID-19, with more tests expected to come in.
As of early Saturday afternoon, there were 141 positive cases in Orange County, 37 more than Friday morning, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
There are currently 25 nursing homes across the state dealing with outbreaks. An outbreak is defined by the state as two or more cases.
People 65 and older and those with underlying health conditions are considered to be the most at-risk of a severe illness when contracting COVID-19, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Gov. Roy Cooper issued an executive order Thursday that outlines new mandatory instructions for long-term care facilities. They include halting group meals; taking the temperatures of employees before they enter the building; and increasing the monitoring of residents’ temperatures.
This story was originally published April 11, 2020 at 2:34 PM with the headline "Fourth person from Orange County nursing home dies from the coronavirus."
