As of Wednesday morning, Avamere at Three Fountains had 113 cases of coronavirus among its residents and staff. That\u2019s dozens more than any similar facility in Oregon.<\/p>\n
The facility with the second-most cases is Maryville Memory Care in Washington County with 74 cases, according to weekly state data released by the Oregon Health Authority on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Some of the information in OHA\u2019s weekly report isn\u2019t as up-to-date as local data from county governments. On Wednesday, Jackson County Public Health reported that the Three Fountains facility had 113 cases, while the state reported 95 cases. The county also listed Avamere\u2019s Health Services of Rogue Valley facility as having 71 cases on Wednesday, while the state reported just 37.<\/p>\n
The outbreak at Three Fountains started with just two staff members in early November, according to Jackson County medical director Jim Shames. He says faster testing could have helped prevent the spread.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur nationwide testing dilemma can be reflected in real-world situations exactly like this,\u201d Shames says. \u201cIf they were able to know immediately that they had two or three people that were positive, they could have isolated them starting on day one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, a nurse at Three Fountains told JPR that some nurses and staff didn\u2019t consistently follow COVID safety procedures. The source said some staff didn\u2019t always wear their masks or didn\u2019t wear them properly, and management didn\u2019t strictly enforce the rules.<\/p>\n
JPR isn\u2019t naming the nurse to protect their job.<\/p>\n
The nurse asked to remain anonymous because some nurses have faced retaliation as a result of reporting on their employers for not following proper coronavirus protocols. A spokesperson with the Oregon Nurses Association says some employers have told nurses that they\u2019d be violating federal health privacy laws associated with HIPAA \u2014 the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.<\/p>\n
\u201cHospitals have threatened to fire or discipline nurses and staff who speak out about legitimate safety issues, and that has happened since the beginning of Oregon’s COVID-19 outbreak,\u201d Kevin Mealy says. \u201cIt is deeply concerning. These types of illegal gag orders prevent the public from hearing about safety issues that are going on inside the facility that could soon result in an outbreak that might affect folks outside the community as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Avamere operates more than 40 facilities in Oregon, as well as about a dozen more in other states. Based on past inspections, Medicare has given Avamere\u2019s Three Fountains location in Medford a \u201cmuch below average\u201d health inspection rating.<\/p>\n
Avamere administrators didn\u2019t respond to multiple requests for comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As of Wednesday morning, Avamere at Three Fountains had 113 cases of coronavirus among its residents and staff. That\u2019s dozens more than any similar facility in Oregon. The facility with the second-most cases is Maryville Memory Care in Washington County with 74 cases, according to weekly state data released by the Oregon Health Authority on Wednesday. Some of the information in OHA\u2019s weekly report isn\u2019t as up-to-date as local data from county governments. On Wednesday, Jackson County Public Health reported that the Three Fountains facility had 113 cases, while the state reported 95 cases. The county also listed Avamere\u2019s Health […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2915,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n