Six more COVID-19 deaths reported at nursing homes in Wyandotte and Johnson counties
One month after its first resident died of COVID-19, Riverbend rehabilitation and nursing home in Kansas City, Kansas, has now recorded 36 total deaths — the most at one place in the state.
Four more residents of Riverbend Post Acute Rehablitation have died, according to information released Tuesday by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas. The facility has reported 132 positive cases — 105 residents and 27 staff. Three are still hospitalized.
Two other nursing facilities — Delaware Highlands Assisted Living and Life Care Center of Kansas City — have reported COVID-19 outbreaks in Wyandotte County.
The Unified Government Public Health Department is in regular contact with all three facilities.
“Staff is providing testing, PPE (personal protective equipment), and guidance on infection control steps,” according to information released by the UG Tuesday afternoon. “All of the facilities are implementing measures to better understand the spread of the virus in their facilities and how to more effectively protect staff and residents.”
Two more deaths have been reported this week at Brighton Gardens in Prairie Village, which has the most cases in Johnson County with 45. Eight residents have died, according to new information provided by the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment. Forest Creek Memory Care in Overland Park has reported 24 cases and seven deaths.
The number of nursing facility deaths in Johnson County due to the coronavirus account for 73 percent of the county’s total.
Nursing homes across the country are among the hardest hit during the epidemic. Residents are elderly and often in poor health.
According to information The Star has obtained, at least 30 long-term care facilities in the Kansas City area have reported COVID-19 cases. Roughly half of those are in Johnson County, where 33 residents at nursing homes and assisted living facilities have died.
In Wyandotte County, the three outbreaks at nursing homes make up nearly 63 percent of the county’s total COVID-19 deaths.
All residents and staff at Delaware Highlands have now been tested twice, UG officials said. The most recent testing was last week and that second round found no additional cases. So far, the facility has reported 18 cases, 16 of those residents.
At Life Care Center of Kansas City, results of the recent testing of all residents and staff came back this past weekend. Those results more than doubled the number of cases at the facility.
The total number of cases at Life Care is 37 — 30 residents and seven staff. Four residents at Life Care Center have died, including a man in his 70s who died on March 11 and was Kansas’ first COVID-19 death.
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 4:29 PM.
