The Hilo Life Care Center has experienced several clusters of COVID-19 and it was noticed in Hilo on Tuesday, April 18, 2023. (Kelsey Walling/Tribune-Herald)
Hilo’s Life Care Center recently experienced a COVID-19 outbreak, resulting in 93 cases and one death since April.
Hilo’s Life Care Center recently experienced a COVID-19 outbreak, resulting in 93 cases and one death since April.
However, representatives from the Life Care Center and the state Secretary of Health showed that the facility is now underactive and that interior tours are open at the facility.
“As of May 23, Life Care Center Hilo is pleased to announce that we have no active instances of COVID-19 in our building,” Life Care Center Executive Director Kirsten Huertas said in a statement to the Tribune-Herald on Tuesday. Please continue to monitor all of our citizens and affiliates for symptoms and symptoms, as well as practice masking, social distancing, and right-hand hygiene. “
Of the cases, 76 concern citizens and 17 members.
The DOH reported one COVID-19 from a resident after he was transferred to the hospital.
The facility has a total of 252 beds for its senior housing, but declined to provide a percentage of the total number of existing residents.
“We remain adhering to the recommendation of our local fitness department, as well as the most recent guidelines proposed through the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. USA) and (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid) in relation to COVID-19 and infection control. “Huertas said, “Most of the COVID-19 cases our facility has treated in recent months have been asymptomatic, and most of those who had symptoms who were vaccinated recovered quickly. “
The DOH showed that it has been working with Hilo Life Care Center since the outbreak began in early April, offering ongoing assistance.
“After the nursing home consulted with the DOH and implemented enhanced infection measures, new cases slowed,” DOH spokesman Shawn Hahamamoto told the Tribune-Herald via email Monday.
The DOH is also investigating a COVID-related complaint it won in relation to the Hilo facility.
“The Office of Healthcare Assurance, the DOH nursing facility’s regulatory compliance program, conducted a specific infection investigation based on federal needs and also conducted an investigation into an unnamed complaint related to COVID,” Hamamoto said. “The effects of the survey and investigation shall be felt at the end of the research/investigation and after the effects have been communicated to the establishment. “
The DOH also showed that it uses an infection specialist as a component of its mitigation efforts.
“DOH infection specialists provide up-to-date guidance and offer on-site testing and education to help services implement the most productive practices and prevent infections,” Hamamoto said. “These are independent of regulatory site visits and are intended to assist services identify opportunities and overcome barriers similar to infection practices. During an outbreak, DOH works with the facility’s infection staff to review and propose actions that can be taken through the facility to prevent the spread of the disease.
Representatives from the DOH and Hilo Life Care Center mentioned the role of vaccines in reducing the spread and severity of diseases through COVID-19.
“Maximum COVID-19 vaccination and the use of boosters in nursing homes, as well as the implementation of other mitigation measures at multiple levels, have particularly reduced the number of outbreak-related hospitalizations and deaths in those settings,” Hamamoto said. “Unfortunately, once a COVID-19 outbreak has started in a nursing home, it can be very complicated and deaths can still occur. “