BURLINGTON – Alamance County Health Department has identified an outbreak at the long-term care facility Village of Brookwood Retirement Community in Burlington. Currently, nine (9) cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed among six (6) staff and three (3) residents. Of the six (6) staff members, three (3) are residents of other counties and are not included in the Alamance County COVID-19 daily case count, but will be included on the biweekly Long-Term Care Facility (LTCF) report for NC DHHS. NC DHHS defines an outbreak as two laboratory-confirmed cases in a period of 28 days within a congregate living or long-term care facility. Regular testing is required through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in order to provide surveillance as protective factor for both staff and residents.
“The safety and well-being of our residents and team is our utmost priority. Throughout the pandemic, residents and staff alike have worked diligently to minimize the virus finding its way on to our campus and to mitigate its spread when it does. As new cases continue to rise throughout our greater community and state, the Village is working closely with experts at Cone Health and Alamance County Health Department in ways that should further limit spread at the Village,” said Healthcare Administrator, April Mayberry.
“Alamance County Health Department has collaborated with Village of Brookwood to offer testing and guidance to mitigate the outbreak as quickly as possible in order to keep staff, residents, and our community safe,” stated Health Director Tony Lo Giudice. “We will continue to work with the facility by conducting surveillance testing and continuing communication between the Health Department, hospital partners and the facility.”
Alamance County Health Department identified its first confirmed case of COVID-19 on March 20. Since then, a total of 9806 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the community. Of those confirmed cases, 8765 have been released from isolation and 909 remain active and in isolation. Included in those active cases, 54 individuals are receiving care at a hospital. Sadly, there have been 132 COVID-19 related deaths. COVID-related deaths include only patients who tested positive for the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, and who died without fully recovering from the disease.
COVID-19 cases are continuing to rise in Alamance and surrounding counties. It is important to take steps to reduce your risks of contracting COVID-19, specifically wearing a face covering, maintaining physical distance and avoiding crowds, and washing your hands and cleaning commonly used surfaces regularly. During this holiday season, limit travel and limit physical contact with people who do not live in your household. The health of you, your loved ones, and the community are what matters.
