Coronavirus outbreaks have been identified at two Clay County nursing homes, with one of them experiencing a spike over the last couple of weeks.
Pleasant Valley Manor Care Center near Liberty, whose first case was identified on May 28, has since confirmed 79 cases and eight deaths. That's 20 more cases and 6 more deaths than a couple of weeks ago.
Meanwhile, Ashton Court Care and Rehabilitation Centre, also in Liberty, now reports that five staff members and three residents have tested positive for the coronavirus.
The two outbreaks appear to be unrelated, according to the Clay County Public Health Center, which reported the Ashton Court outbreak late Friday afternoon.
The cases at Pleasant Valley Manor Care Center now account for 11% of all COVID-19 cases, the disease caused by the coronavirus, and more than half the COVID-19 deaths in Clay County.
Including the separately counted part of Clay County inside Kansas City limits, the county has recorded a total of 695 COVID-19 cases and 15 deaths.
Pleasant Valley Manor Care Center has done three rounds of testing of all of its residents and staff since May 28, when it identified its first known case.
Kelsey Neth, a spokeswoman for the Clay County Public Health Center, said Pleasant Valley has been working closely with health officials to implement mitigation measures.
“They’ve been very cooperative in trying to bring those numbers down over the past few weeks,” she said.
All but 18 of the cases at Pleasant Valley have been asymptomatic, Neth said. Residents account for all of the deaths there and 59 of the 79 positive cases. Staff account for the remaining cases.
Since May 18, nursing homes have been required to report cases of COVID-19 to Missouri state public health officials within 24 hours.
“That change in the notification process has allowed local and state public health to more quickly get involved in outbreaks and coordinate efforts with the facilities to minimize any further spread of disease,” Ashley Wegner, section chief of Health Planning and Policy for the Clay County Public Health Center, said in a statement.
“All the long-term care facilities in Clay County that have experienced COVID-19 outbreaks have been cooperative in their joint efforts with us and the state to try to protect their employees and residents," she said.
