April 22, 2020 – Poweshiek County, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) and Poweshiek County Public Health have identified 28 cases of COVID-19 at St. Francis Manor, a long-term care facility in Poweshiek County. According to IDPH, an outbreak is when three or more cases of COVID-19 are identified among residents of a facility.
The facility has notified residents and their families, and consistent with IDPH guidelines, the affected residents are in isolation. St. Francis Manor staff are working closely with IDPH and Poweshiek County Public Health to protect the health of all residents and staff, with additional testing of residents and staff as directed by IDPH.
“Protecting the health and wellbeing of the residents and staff is of the highest priority,” says Poweshiek County Public Health Director, Shauna Callaway. “We know our older population is at the highest risk for serious COVID-19 illness, so we are monitoring the situation carefully and taking the highest precautions to prevent virus spread.”
As of April 22, 2020, there are 37 total cases of COVID-19 in Poweshiek County. The Poweshiek County Health Department continues to work closely with the IDPH and other state and local partners to respond to this ongoing pandemic.
For up-to-date information on COVID-19, including an interactive map with county, regional and long-term care outbreak information, visit https://idph.iowa.gov/Emerging-Health-Issues/Novel-Coronavirus.
