By Melody Vallieu
Miami Valley Today
MIAMI COUNTY — Miami County reached 21 deaths and 125 cases related to COVID-19 on Wednesday.
This includes two additional deaths since Tuesday and an additional three coronavirus cases that have been reported, according to Miami County Public Health (MCPH) officials.
According to MCPH officials, 17 of the county’s deaths are nursing home related and four are considered community spread. No healthcare worker deaths have been documented, MCPH officials said. The new death toll includes the first confirmed COVID-19 death in the city of Piqua health jurisdiction, according to city of Piqua Director of Health and Sanitation Amy Welker. Welker said the victim is a 91-year-old female who is not related to the nursing home outbreak in the county.
“At this time, our deepest condolences go out to the family that lost their loved one” Welker said. “The citizens of Piqua need to remain diligent in maintaining their social distance and practicing good hygiene to prevent the spread of this virus.”
The case age range in the county is less than 1 year to 96 years old, with 73 females and 52 males, according to MCPH. In Piqua, according to Welker, the city is reporting 11 cases, all already included in the MCPH numbers, and include eight females and three males ranging in age from 23 to 91.
MCPH officials said 41 of the county’s COVID-19 cases are nursing home cases and 34 are healthcare workers with the rest being community spread. Information is not yet available on the three new cases from Wednesday.
Premier Health officials, like Kettering Health Network officials, this week said stock of personal protective equipment (PPE) is sufficient at their facilities at this time.
“We have the necessary PPE for our current needs at the hospital and the nursing homes. We continue to monitor and conserve PPE as we work to address potential long-term needs,” Premier Health officials said.
At UVMC, space needed to treat all patients remains sufficient, according to officials.
“UVMC has the capacity and equipment to take care of all respiratory patients being admitted to the hospital currently,” Premier Health officials said. “In collaboration with community partners, we are actively monitoring admission needs and planning for the probable future increase of patients to be in the best position to provide the level of care needed.”
Premier Health officials, while not specifying if they are transferring COVID-19 patients to larger facilities, said they continue to ensure patients are getting the best care.
“We have always partnered with other hospitals to ensure that patients have access to the right level of care. In collaboration with our public health partners, Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA) and our community partners, and as the state of Ohio has required, we are actively working on our continuing preparedness to manage the COVID-19 spread,” Premier Health officials said. “In addition, there is a regional surge plan that is being coordinated through GDAHA that will ensure our patients continue to have access to appropriate care.”
This week, Governor Mike DeWine had Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton issue an order that requires long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes, to notify residents and their families within 24 hours of a resident or staff member becoming infected with coronavirus. The state also will be providing a list of the facilities where an associated individual has tested positive on its website.
Premier Health officials said they were already providing information to families about the situations at the Premier Health-owned facilities.
“We actively review all orders issued by the Ohio Department of Health to ensure appropriate compliance and will do so with this order,” Premier Health officials said. “Koester Pavilion and SpringMeade were already providing daily reports to our local health department and keeping families updated from onset as proactive measures.”
In Ohio, as of Wednesday, there are 7,791 COVID-19 cases, including 163 probable cases as defined by the Center for Disease Control’s expanded case definition, according to Acton. Cases are documented in 87 of the 88 counties, Acton said. Cases remain at 48 percent males and 52 percent females with a median age of 54 years old.
Deaths have climbed to 361, which also includes 15 probable cases, according to Acton.
There have been 2,237 people hospitalized in the state with 677 of those admitted into intensive care.
There have been 71,000 tests ran in the state, which is “just the tip of the iceberg,” Acton said, because of the lack of tests yet available in the state.
For more information, visit coronavirus.ohio.org.
