Otterbein testing all residents, employees as death toll climbs to 12

Officials at a Franklin senior care facility where a COVID-19 outbreak has occurred said Tuesday they are testing all residents and employees, and so far, about 14% have tested positive for the virus. Twelve residents have died.

The program, dubbed the Otterbein Offensive, started Thursday. As of Tuesday, 342 residents and employees have been tested as part of the program, according to a news release from Otterbein Franklin SeniorLife Community. All testing is done on-site, said David Sease, spokesperson for Otterbein Franklin. Otterbein bought several testing kits and hired a lab, which sent a training team to the facility. The team did several tests with Otterbein employees, who then assumed responsibility to complete the ongoing testing, he said.

Of those tests, 12 more people tested positive for the virus—five residents and seven employees, the news release said.

All residents who test positive for the virus are quarantined in an isolation unit at the facility, or in their own homes on campus, Otterbein officials have said.

Before Otterbein launched its widespread testing program, it had tested 179 residents and employees, most of whom showed some symptoms.

“Nearly all of the newly identified cases were not displaying symptoms, and we believe this early discovery, combined with Otterbein’s aggressive safety protocols, will significantly reduce the risk of spread,” said Rob Newcomer, Otterbein Franklin’s executive director.

Overall, more than 500 residents and employees have been tested, and about 14% tested positive. On Tuesday, 76 test results were still pending, according to the news release. About 80 residents still need to be tested, the news release said.

“The purpose of the Otterbein Offensive is to expose unidentified COVID-19 cases by expanding testing to all residents and caregivers at all Otterbein locations, including Franklin, to enable us to take immediate steps to better manage spread of the virus,” Newcomer said in a statement.

“I truly believe this program is a crucial step in confronting COVID-19, minimizing the spread and in providing comfort.”

Otterbein officials said they will also test any new residents.

The outbreak originated last month when a therapist was admitted to the hospital and tested positive. Otterbein Franklin has more than 500 residents, 165 of whom are in the nursing home where the outbreak initially occurred, and about 300 employees.

Johnson County health officials on Tuesday reported seven more coronavirus-related deaths, bringing the county’s death toll to 60.

The newly reported deaths were all Greenwood residents, ranging in age from 69 to 93, said Betsy Swearingen, director of the Johnson County Health Department. Newly reported deaths are not necessarily new deaths.

The county health department also reported nine more laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing to 553 the number of cases in the county.

The Indiana State Department of Health on Tuesday said the number of positive cases for COVID-19 in the state has risen to 16,588, following the emergence of 627 more cases.

The new-case figure marks a decrease from Monday’s report, when a major outbreak of positive cases in Cass County boosted the daily count to a new high.

The state reported 949 new cases Monday, 617 cases on Sunday, 715 on Saturday, 641 on Friday, 601 on Thursday and 341 on Wednesday.

The state said Tuesday that the cumulative death toll in the state rose to 901, up from 844 the previous day—an increase of 57.

About 91% of the deaths involve those who are age 60 or older. About 72% of those who have died are older than 70.

The state reported that 87,181 people have been tested so far, up from 84,476 in Monday’s report—an increase of 2,705 tests.

The ISDH said the test numbers reflect only those tests reported to the department and the numbers should not be characterized as a comprehensive total.

New positive cases, deaths and tests have occurred over a range of dates but were reported to the department in the previous day.

The department reported the state’s first case on March 6.

Nearby Indianapolis reported 5,080 cumulative cases—up from 4,926 the previous day, an increase of 154 cases.

The state reported 282 cumulative deaths in the city, up from 267 in Monday’s report. The state said 22,811 people have been tested.

As for surrounding counties, Hamilton had 729 positive cases; Hendricks 645; Boone 185; Hancock 204; Madison 401; Morgan 136; and Shelby 191.

Every Indiana county has at least one case.

The department said 44.2% of the state’s intensive care unit beds were still available. About 16.7% are being used by COVID-19 patients.

The department also said 79.5% of the state’s ventilators were available. About 9% were being used for COVID-19 patients.

Health officials say Indiana has far more coronavirus cases—possibly thousands more—than those indicated by the number of tests.

As of Tuesday morning, 990,135 cases had been reported in the United States, with 56,386 deaths, according to a running tally maintained by health researchers at Johns Hopkins University & Medicine. More than 111,580 people have recovered.

More than 3 million cases have been reported globally, with 212,221 deaths. More than 906,350 people have recovered.

The Indianapolis Business Journal contributed to this report.