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Case Reports
. 2020 Mar 27;69(12):339-342.
doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6912e1.

COVID-19 in a Long-Term Care Facility - King County, Washington, February 27-March 9, 2020

Temet M McMichael, Shauna Clark, Sargis Pogosjans, Meagan Kay, James Lewis, Atar Baer, Vance Kawakami, Margaret D Lukoff, Jessica Ferro, Claire Brostrom-Smith, Francis X Riedo, Denny Russell, Brian Hiatt, Patricia Montgomery, Agam K Rao, Dustin W Currie, Eric J Chow, Farrell Tobolowsky, Ana C Bardossy, Lisa P Oakley, Jesica R Jacobs, Noah G Schwartz, Nimalie Stone, Sujan C Reddy, John A Jernigan, Margaret A Honein, Thomas A Clark, Jeffrey S Duchin; Public Health – Seattle & King County, EvergreenHealth, and CDC COVID-19 Investigation Team
Collaborators, Affiliations
Case Reports

COVID-19 in a Long-Term Care Facility - King County, Washington, February 27-March 9, 2020

Temet M McMichael et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. .

Abstract

On February 28, 2020, a case of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was identified in a woman resident of a long-term care skilled nursing facility (facility A) in King County, Washington.* Epidemiologic investigation of facility A identified 129 cases of COVID-19 associated with facility A, including 81 of the residents, 34 staff members, and 14 visitors; 23 persons died. Limitations in effective infection control and prevention and staff members working in multiple facilities contributed to intra- and interfacility spread. COVID-19 can spread rapidly in long-term residential care facilities, and persons with chronic underlying medical conditions are at greater risk for COVID-19-associated severe disease and death. Long-term care facilities should take proactive steps to protect the health of residents and preserve the health care workforce by identifying and excluding potentially infected staff members and visitors, ensuring early recognition of potentially infected patients, and implementing appropriate infection control measures.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors have completed and submitted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.

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