There are at least 67 confirmed cases of COVID-19 at Five Oaks Manor, a nursing home and rehabilitation center in Concord. The Cabarrus County facility has 134 residents and 230 staff members, according to administrator Drew Richard.
“Since early March, we’ve been aggressively doing what the CDC had recommended and beyond in terms of doing what we could to protect our residents and staff, which included limiting visitation, no communal dining, no communal activities,” Richard said.
Richard said a nursing home resident tested positive last week, though he said it’s not clear how they contracted COVID-19.
“Anybody who tested positive, they’re only in one section of the facility,” Richard said.
He said the facility has been on lockdown since March 13 and all staff members must wear a mask at work.
Cabarrus County health officials are now working to test all of Five Oaks’ staff and residents, spokeswoman Melanie Grafals said in an email. The county had 165 coronavirus cases as of Monday evening, according to state numbers.
In November, a surprise state inspection of Five Oaks found the facility violated at least 10 federal regulations, according to state health department records.
In one complaint, workers failed to help an incontinent resident who had urinated on herself. In another, staff left a resident’s meal on an open-air cart in the hallway for 20 minutes before helping her eat. Five Oaks Manor was judged to be back in compliance in December 2019.
In 2018, an inspection found, among other things, the facility’s emergency preparedness plan did not address the resident population. The facility fixed the violation.
Nursing homes across North Carolina have been plagued by coronavirus outbreaks. Health officials on Monday announced 23 people tested positive at three different Durham facilities. Pinehurst Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, a nursing home in Moore County, had at least 30 confirmed cases.
Last week, Governor Roy Cooper issued an executive order with new requirements for nursing homes. It bans dining and group activities in common spaces, requires all employees to wear face masks and mandates employees and residents be screened for symptoms of illness.
