SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — A resident at the Spokane Veterans Home has died of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
This marks the first veteran to die from the virus in the Spokane area. At least seven residents total in the Spokane area have tested positive for coronavirus.
As of Wednesday morning, there have been 13 deaths among 239 positive cases of coronavirus in Spokane County. More than 40 people have been hospitalized and 15 are still receiving care.
According to the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs, one of two residents who tested positive for the virus this week died on Wednesday. The resident who died "had been on end-of-life care for some time and had underlying medical conditions," according to the WSDVA.
"It is with a heavy heart that we share that one of the two residents who tested positive for COVID-19 passed away today. We are always saddened by the loss of one of our honored Spokane Veterans Home residents and this is no exception. Each Veteran served our nation honorably, and we take very seriously the business of caring for them when they need us the most," the WSDVA said in a release.
The symptoms of the resident's roommate, who also tested positive, have lessened, according to the department.
The Spokane Veterans Home announced on March 31 that an employee had tested positive for coronavirus. That employee was tested on March 23 before returning to work on March 27 due to not showing symptoms.
The employee's test results came back positive on March 30, leaders with the Spokane Veterans Home said, adding that they were working to develop a timeline to determine where the employee had been in the building.
120 veterans tested for coronavirus at Mann-Grandstaff; at least 5 more positive cases
At least five other veterans in the Spokane area have tested positive for the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) among 3,038 cases in veterans nationwide as of Tuesday.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) said on its website that two out of five Spokane veterans have received inpatient treatment while three have received outpatient treatment.
Sam McComas, a nurse who serves as Deputy Incident Commander at Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, said the five veterans were tested at the medical center. None are hospitalized nor have they been reported to be in the community.
“Our assumption is that they are home," McComas said.
One employee at the medical center developed coronavirus symptoms while on vacation and tested positive. They have not returned to work.
Overall, staff at the medical center in Spokane have tested about 120 veterans for coronavirus, with the number of pending test results in the single digits, McComas said.
The wait time for test results is typically a few days, as another VA medical center in California has offered to test samples from Spokane and deliver results online.
Leaders with the U.S. VA recently announced that all hospital units would be split into two zones to isolate coronavirus cases from normal operations.
"We have two separate areas that are up and ready for capability," said McComas of the medical center in Spokane.
One of the main areas would be for COVID-19 positive patients and the other is for patients that are admitted to the hospital for other reasons.
“We have seen staff go above and beyond. They’re doing services and work that isn’t necessarily part of their regular job," McComas added.
McComas said Mann-Grandstaff is also "going full-speed ahead" on rehiring medical personnel or bringing employees back from retirement to reinforce response capacity in the event of a possible surge in cases.
The medical center is working to increase bed capacity and ICU beds and ventilator capacity by purchasing or acquiring additional equipment. ICU-level nurses have also received revamped training should a surge occur, McComas added.
McComas also said that he is impressed with how the community has stepped up to help medical personnel working with veterans.
“Almost every day we have community partners who contact us all the way from businesses to the quilting guild who has a few ladies that are willing to sell masks," he added.
While Mann-Grandstaff is not accepting homemade masks at this time, as they are not appropriate for direct patient care, the guidance could change, McComas said.
“Should shortages actually occur or things go down the path we are preparing for, I think we would have an increased flexibility in how we are going to use those masks," he added.