Mass testing revealed major coronavirus outbreaks at two Orange County nursing homes

Dozens of residents and staff members at two Orange County nursing homes have tested positive for the new coronavirus, and officials credited mass testing of people in the facilities for alerting them to the outbreaks.

Posted 11:20 p.m. Apr 10, 2020 — Updated 11:20 p.m. Apr 10, 2020

Joe Fisher

, WRAL reporter

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Dozens of residents and staff members at two Orange County nursing homes have tested positive for the new coronavirus, and officials credited mass testing of people in the facilities for alerting them to the outbreaks.

PruittHealth's Carolina Point facility in Durham has 86 cases – 66 residents and 20 employees – and three residents have died. Signature HealthCARE of Chapel Hill has reported at least 30 cases, and officials said that number will grow as more test results come back.

The outbreak of Carolina Point prompted state officials to put new restrictions on nursing homes across North Carolina and begin testing all residents and staffers to curb the rapid spread of the virus.

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But the Orange County Health Department had already undertaken mass testing with the help of Duke University Health System and UNC Health.

"I wouldn’t have had the manpower to do it. I would not have had enough supplies to do it just based on what we have at the local department," county Health Director Quintana Stewart said.

A worker at PruittHealth tested positive on March 26, and as residents and other workers started feeling ill, she said, the health department created a strike team with Duke doctors, who tested the entire Carolina Point facility on Monday.

At Signature, a resident tested positive while in the hospital on March 30. UNC doctors conducted mass testing at the facility on Tuesday.

"The fact that they are having cases is not indicative that they are doing something wrong or they are being negligent with any of their infection control practices," Stewart said.

Stewart said her department has enough supplies for general testing, but not large-scale efforts like an entire nursing home.

"For us, the demand that we are seeing at our local health department, it is adequate," she said of supplies. "We have enough."

She said her focus is now on keeping the virus out of the other three long-term care facilities in Orange County.

"We want to get ahead of this, and we don’t want them to have a positive case,” she said.

The mass testing not only helps nursing homes isolate virus cases more quickly, it helps the hospitals prepare for a potential surge in patients, Stewart said.

"I think it’s a win-win," she said. "It helps the hospital system get ahead of what could be to come because, if the patients in these facilities start to deteriorate rapidly, it’s like they get a leg up and they are prepared if they see a surge. They know what’s coming, and they can plan better."

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