NEWTON, Kan. — The Harvey County Health Department has confirmed a cluster of COVID-19 cases at the Schowalter Villa retirement facility in Hesston.
The cluster includes seven facility staff members confirmed to have COVID-19. There are no known COVID-19 cases among residents.
Two staff members were sent home to quarantine upon showing symptoms in Schowalter Villa’s screening process. Two staff members stayed home upon feeling ill. Three individuals were asymptomatic. Two of the seven cases have met recovery criteria. Five remain in isolation.
Cases were identified through staff and resident testing conducted by Schowalter Villa when an employee was confirmed to have COVID-19.
This is the first cluster of COVID-19 cases identified in Harvey County. The cluster will be considered active until there are 28 consecutive days – two incubation periods – without positive cases.
Schowalter Villa, in conjunction with the Health Department, will continue to monitor the health of staff and residents, as well as continue previously established preventative measures.
Additionally, the Health Department has confirmed seven new cases of COVID-19 in Harvey County. They are unrelated to the aforementioned cluster. The confirmed cases include:
· A female in her 50s. She is a close contact of a known active case.
· A female in her 30s. She is a close contact of a known active case.
· A female in her 30s. She was in contact with another individual with COVID-19 in another county. She has already met recovery criteria.
· A female between 10-and-19 years old. She is a close contact of a known active case.
· A male in his 50s. This case is under investigation.
· A male in his 40s. He is a close contact of a known active case.
· A male in his 20s. His source of exposure is unknown.
Harvey County has had 102 COVID-19 cases to date, including 98 confirmed and four probable cases. There are 41 known active cases in Harvey County. One individual remains hospitalized. There have been 2,649 tests for COVID-19 conducted in Harvey County.