Fayetteville nursing home reports covid-19 outbreak

FAYETTEVILLE -- A local nursing home has had 70 covid-19 cases, but the state's report was late to reflect the data, according to the facility and the Arkansas Department of Health.

Fayetteville Health and Rehabilitation Center on Old Missouri Road has had 48 residents and 22 staff members with covid-19 as of Wednesday, according to the Health Department. The department reported 12 cases Tuesday, including seven residents and five staff members.

Joe Perkins, spokesman for NHS Management, the company owning Fayetteville Health and Rehabilitation Center, said the facility learned of most of the cases in July and reported them to the Health Department then. The facility has had four new cases, all residents, within the past two weeks, he said.

The home has nine residents with active cases, meaning they haven't recovered. Those patients are in an isolated part of the home, and staff who cares for them don't care for other residents, he said. Twelve residents of the facility have died of the virus, Perkins said.

One staff member has an active case and is staying home from work, Perkins said. All residents and staff have been tested.

Different facilities report in different ways and that can affect how and when the state reports cases, according to Danyelle McNeill, spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Health. The numbers added at Fayetteville Health and Rehab are older cases, but are new to the report, she said.

Fayetteville Health and Rehabilitation is licensed for up to 140 beds, according to the Arkansas Department of Human Services.

Other homes in Northwest Arkansas have had significant outbreaks of the virus.

North Hills Life Care and Rehab near Washington Regional Medical Center has had 50 cases, including 27 residents and 23 staff members. The home didn't have any active cases, or ones that aren't recovered, as of Thursday, McNeill said.

A representative from the facility didn't respond to a request for comment. The home is licensed for up to 92 beds, according to the Arkansas Department of Human Services.

The Waters of Rogers on North Dixieland Road reported 19 residents and 23 staff members tested positive for covid-19 in June. The Health Department's reports continued to reflect that data until Wednesday. The facility had an additional 17 residents and nine staff members infected, according to the report released Thursday. An administrator at the home was unavailable to comment Thursday afternoon.

The home is licensed to have up to 110 residents, according to Arkansas Department of Human Services.

Additionally, Piney Ridge Treatment Center in Fayetteville, which has a residential program for children with sexual behavior problems, has had 30 residents and 15 staff members test positive for the virus as of Thursday. The Health Department report doesn't include how many cases are active and how many represent patients who have recovered. The latest positive case at the facility was reported Aug. 4.

A representative from Piney Ridge didn't respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch, a boarding school for boys with addiction or behavior problems in Morrow in southwest Washington County, had 27 residents and 10 staff members who had tested positive as of Wednesday, according to the Health Department. The latest positive case at the facility was also reported Aug. 4.

"Our organization has worked closely with the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health throughout the pandemic to assure the vital services we offer are provided safely and in accordance with state department guidelines," according to Jeremiah Morris, business manager at Teen Challenge. "There were positive covid-19 cases on our campus, none of which required hospitalization. Moreover, no active infections currently exist with any of our clients or staff members."

The Arkansas Department of Health releases an almost daily list of nursing homes and other congregate settings, such as jails, with covid-19 cases among their residents and/or staff. The number of deaths have temporarily been removed from the list because the department discovered some discrepancies in how many deaths were recorded at the facilities. The department is working to make sure the data is correct before it resumes reporting the deaths for each facility, McNeill said.

McNeill confirmed neither Piney Ridge Treatment Center nor Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch had any covid-19-related deaths.

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the state have had 1,600 residents and 1,081 staff members test positive for covid-19, according to the Health Department.