Rhode Island psychiatric hospital deals with virus outbreak

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A state-run psychiatric hospital in Rhode Island is dealing with a “significant" coronavirus outbreak caused in part by employees showing up to work sick, authorities said.

The outbreak includes a dozen staff members and six patients, according to an email sent to staff Friday by Brian Daly, the chief medical officer at Eleanor Slater Hospital in Cranston, and obtained by The Providence Journal.

Randal Edgar, a spokesperson for the state Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, which oversees the hospital, said in an email to The Associated Press on Monday that the newspaper's report was accurate, but did not provide additional details or updates.

“The most troubling information we uncovered in doing contact tracing is that some staff members worked even while they had significant symptoms of cold or flu-like illness," Daly's email said. “This means that they signed the attestation we all sign every day saying they did not have these symptoms when they did."

The email went on to say that many patients are vulnerable and at an increased risk of having serious health complications from the illness.

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REMOTE LEARNING

Rhode Island's two major teachers' unions on Monday called for a “holiday pause” to in-person learning and a move to distance learning for all K-12 students by Nov. 23.

The National Education Association Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals called for better contact tracing and more frequent testing in schools, improved air filtration, and a deep cleaning of school buildings.

The state Department of Education works with the state Department of Health to monitor the spread of the virus, spokesperson Emily Crowell said in an emailed...