SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) – Officials at Sarasota Memorial Hospital announced late Thursday night that a patient in their care has tested presumptively positive for coronavirus.
A presumptive positive case is when a state health lab has a positive test without CDC confirmation.
The 70-year-old man from Massachusetts was admitted to the hospital on March 10 and officials say he was placed in isolation under the care of staff who’s been trained in appropriate infection prevent and control measures.
Hospital leaders are working with the Florida Health Department to isolate and monitor any healthcare provide and close contacts of the patient who were potentially exposed, as well as to implement testing for anyone who develops coronavirus symptoms.
State health officials are still investigating how the man contracted coronavirus and will identify anyone in the community who may have been exposed.
“Our team has been preparing for this eventuality for more than a month, and we have trained teams equipped with the resources needed to help keep our community safe,” SMH CEO David Verinder said. “As more people are diagnosed in our nation, it is important to remember that we are talking about more than numbers. These are people we care for, and care about, and we all need to do our part to protect those most vulnerable in our community.”
Officials at SMH say patients with severe respiratory illness are hospitalized in isolation rooms and treated by staff trained to care for patients at risk for coronavirus. The hospital keeps logs on everyone entering these rooms to identify anyone who came in contact with the patient should a test later show they have coronavirus.
The hospital says it has been restricting visitors to patients in isolation, instead encouraging video calls.
SMH says all of its facilities are operating with extra staff and infection control measures in place. All surface areas of the hospital and outpatient sites are being continually and thoroughly cleaned and high high-risk areas are being treated by ultraviolet disinfection robots.
Late Thursday night, the Florida Health Department announced 16 new positive coronavirus case, including cases in Palm Beach, Sarasota, Alachua, Volusia, Duval, Clay, Broward, Hillsborough, Lee and Miami-Dade counties.
There are two new cases in Sarasota County, the other involving a 50-year-old man from New York.
Many of the new cases remain under investigation to determine how the patients contracted coronavirus, but a few have known origins, such as the Nile River cruise in Egypt, Port Everglades in Broward County, and international travel.
The Health Department says an earlier advisory about a possible case being connected to Daytona Bike Week 2020 was unnecessary. Further investigation showed the man, who had traveled from New York to Daytona, was isolated prior to attending the event.
However, there remains an advisory about a possible case associated with an EMS Conference in Tampa held from March 4 through March 6. The Health Department is recommending any person who attended the event and experiences possible coronavirus symptoms to contact their health care provider or county health department and self-isolate for 14 days.
At least four cases have been connected to Port Everglades and were associated with or employed by Metro Cruise Services, a company that greets cruise ship passengers. The Health Department is recommending any person who experiences possible coronavirus symptoms who traveled through Port Everglades to contact their health care provider or county health department and self-isolate for 14 days.
The Health Department is also advising Metro Cruise Services employees with any association to these cases to self-isolate at home and working with all employees who may have had contact to provide appropriate guidance and monitoring. The CDC also recommends that anyone with recent travel history on a cruise to monitor their health for 14 days and, if they develop symptoms, to immediately self-isolate and contact their health care provider or county health department.
A full list of cases involving Florida residents as of 11pm Thursday is below:
- Manatee, 63, Male, No Known History of International Travel
- Hillsborough, 29, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Santa Rosa, 71, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Broward, 75, Male, No Known History of International Travel
- Broward, 65, Male, No Known History of International Travel
- Lee, 77, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Lee, 77, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Charlotte, 54, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Okaloosa, 61, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Volusia, 66, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Manatee, 81, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Broward, 67, Male, No Known History of International Travel
- Volusia, 60, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Broward, 69, Female, No Known History of International Travel
- Nassau, 68, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Collier, 73, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Collier, 68, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Collier, 64, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Pinellas, 67, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Pinellas, 64, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Pasco, 46, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Miami-Dade, 56, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Broward, 70, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Lee, 57, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 65, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 61, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Seminole, 68, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Palm Beach, 73, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Palm Beach, 74, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Sarasota, 50, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Sarasota, 70, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Alachua, 24, Female, Known History of International Travel
- Volusia, 70, Male, Known History of International Travel
- Duval, 83, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Clay, 57, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 28, Female, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 25, Female, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 68, Female, Travel History Under Investigation
- Broward, 36, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Hillsborough, 49, Female, Travel History Under Investigation
- Lee, 77, Male, Travel History Under Investigation
- Miami-Dade, 42, Male, Known History of International Travel
The latest numbers are below:
Positive Cases of COVID-19
5 – Florida Cases Repatriated*
3 – Non-Florida Residents
Number of Negative Test Results
Number of Pending Test Results
Number of People Under Public Health Monitoring
476 – currently being monitored
1230 – people monitored to date
People Under Public Health Monitoring: The number of people under public health monitoring includes those at risk of having been exposed to COVID-19 who are monitoring their health under the supervision of public health officials.
*Florida Cases Repatriated: The United States Department of State officia