Deputy Health Officer Dr. Ennis provides update on Covid-19 outbreak at Granada Rehabilitation and Wellness Center

HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif. (KIEM) — Humboldt County Deputy Health Officer Sr. Josh Ennis provided an update on the current Covid-19 outbreak at Eureka’s Granada Rehabilitation and Wellness Center, including how Public Health was somewhat late in detecting cases. Part of that is due to the rise in cases across the County and difficulties with contact tracing a large number of cases.

The Public Health Department is working hand in hand with Granada and vets the number of cases daily with the facility to make sure the numbers line up.

After some delay, Granada’s own website has been updated. It currently says they have 71 positive residents and 14 staff members. The latest release from the County reports 54 positive cases among residents and 16 in staff.

“You know, it’s not a contained, closed system. There are people, by nature of caring for those people, who have to come in and out of the facility. And so this can, really it’s a marker for disease that has come into this facility, but when numbers get large, it can ripple back outward into the community,” Ennis says.

While some residents at Granada may end up being transferred to a local hospital, Dr. Ennis assures the community that the cases are Granada are not currently impacting our ICU capacity in a dramatic way.