5 People At Mount Laurel Nursing Home Positive For Coronavirus

MOUNT LAUREL, NJ — Five people at a nursing home in Mount Laurel have tested positive for new coronavirus, including three residents and two employees.

Three residents at Laurel Brook Rehabilitation & Healthcare are receiving treatment at a regional hospital, a spokesperson for the nursing home said on Tuesday. Two employees who have tested positive for the virus are at home with mild symptoms.

“The safety and health of Laurel Brook residents and staff is our unitary concern,” Laurel Brook Director Dr. Andrew Blank said. “We are working closely with local and state health departments and taking guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) protocols to help contain the spread of the virus. This includes continual monitoring of all residents for COVID-19 symptoms along with daily employee screenings. We have a policy, that we will keep for the foreseeable future, for our staff members to stay home if they have any symptoms of respiratory illness, without regard to cause.”

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Laurel Brook has been suspending visitations since before the first case was confirmed, Blank said. All cases have been confirmed within the last seven days. Specific information on each case was not available.

“We understand that connecting with family members and loved ones is incredibly important,” Blank said. “Therefore, we will continue to provide regular updates and encourage them to visit virtually by telephone or video call, email, text, or instant messaging. CDC recommendations on visitation are continuously being updated. State strategies are shifting, too, and as they do, we will be updating our efforts.”

Laurel Brook is located at 3718 Church Road, and it offers a range of services that include long-term care, respite care, chronic kidney disease management and subacute rehabilitation, among other services.

“While our thoughts, efforts and prayers are focused on our residents, it would be inappropriate not to thank those nurses, doctors, aids, housekeepers, members of the dietary teams and other staff that are working tirelessly, going above and beyond on heroically caring for members of our community,” Blank said. “Their steadfast professionalism and dedication to the people in our care remains unwavering at this unprecedented time.”

There have been positive cases of new coronavirus identified in long-term care facilities in 19 of the state's 21 counties, state officials said Tuesday afternoon. Nine of the state's total of 44 deaths were among patients in these facilities, according to officials. There are 375 long-term care facilities in the state.

The New Jersey Department of Health has partnered with the New Jersey Poison Information and Education System to open and operate a call center (1-800-222-1222) for public use regarding questions, concerns, and other information related to coronavirus spread in New Jersey. More information is also available on the state's coronavirus webpage.