43 staffers at California hospital get COVID-19, air-powered Christmas costume may be to blame
Blow-up Christmas costume worn by hospital employee is blamed for infecting 43 emergency department staff with COVID-19 at California hospital
- 43 staffers at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department tested positive for COVID-19 between December 27 to January 1
- Officials are investigating whether an air-powered costume worn by one employee on Christmas Day may be linked to the outbreak
- ‘Any exposure, if it occurred, would have been completely innocent, and quite accidental, as the individual had no COVID symptoms,’ hospital officials said
- The emergency staff were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but would not have reached immunity yet without the second shot
- All those infected are now isolating and the hospital is undergoing a deep clean
At least 43 staffers at a California hospital have been infected with COVID-19 within the past week and officials are investigating whether an inflatable Christmas costume worn by an employee for the holiday may have caused the outbreak.
The staffers at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department tested positive between December 27 to January 1.
Officials said a staffer briefly appeared at the emergency department on Christmas Day wearing an air-powered inflatable costume.
The employee who wore the costume has not been revealed.
‘A staff member did appear briefly in the emergency department on December 25th wearing an air-powered costume,’ Irene Chavez, senior vice president and area manager of Kaiser’s San Jose Medical Center said to the San Francisco Chronicle.
‘Any exposure, if it occurred, would have been completely innocent, and quite accidental, as the individual had no COVID symptoms and only sought to lift the spirits of those around them during what is a very stressful time,’ she said.
At least 43 staffers at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week and officials say an inflatable costume worn by a staffer on Christmas Day may be to blame
The emergency staff were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but the hospital said they ‘would not be expected to have reached immunity when this exposure occurred.’
Officials added: ‘It is important not only for everyone to get vaccinated, but to receive the required two doses of vaccine to be protected.’
Health officials say people must receive the two doses of the vaccine to be protected.
The hospital is now investigating the outbreak.
The hospital’s emergency department is still open and safe to receive patients and all areas of the department are undergoing a deep cleaning, while those infected go into isolation.
The emergency staff were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but the hospital said they ‘would not be expected to have reached immunity when this exposure occurred.’ A view of a Kaiser Permanente staffer getting vaccinated on December 14 above
The outbreak comes as cases are surging in epicenter California with intensive care capacity dropping to 5.1 percent in the Bay Area on Saturday. A view of a nurse in PPE at the ICU at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana on December 18 above
Overall California has recorded more than 2.3million COVID-19 cases and more than 26,000 virus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic. A view of nurses tending to a COVID-19 patient at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, California on December 18 above
‘Obviously, we will no longer allow air-powered costumes at our facilities,’ Chavez said.
‘At the same time, we are taking steps to reinforce safety precautions among staff, including physical distancing and no gathering in break rooms, no sharing of food or beverages, and masks at all times,’ the hospital said, as per ABC7.
DailyMail.com has reached out for further details.
Nearly 40,000 health care workers at Kaiser Permanente have already received COVID-19 vaccines and more are anticipated soon.
The outbreak comes as cases are surging in epicenter California with intensive care capacity dropping to 5.1 percent in the Bay Area on Saturday.
Overall California has recorded more than 2.3million COVID-19 cases and more than 26,000 virus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic. Nationwide more than 20million cases have been reported and more than 350,000 deaths.
