Schuyler Hospital to Temporarily Suspend Hospital Visitation as a Precaution

October 8, 2020 Ithaca, NY – Schuyler Hospital officials announced today that they are temporarily suspending any outside visitation to the hospital starting Friday, October 9, 2020 as a precaution to two confirmed cases of residents of Seneca View. Earlier this week a member of the Seneca View Skilled Nursing Facility staff tested positive during a routine testing. Today, two residents have also tested positive.

Of the positive residents, one is not experiencing any noticeable symptoms of COVID-19 and the second resident is stable and has been transferred to Cayuga Medical Center as a precautionary measure. Both residents have been isolated and the employee is in quarantine at home. “Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic both Schuyler Hospital and Seneca View Skilled Nursing Facility have implemented and continue to maintain stringent safety measures in compliance with the New York State Department of Health and the CDC guidelines to protect patients, residents of Seneca View Skilled Nursing Facility, and our employees,” states Rebecca Gould, President & Chief Financial Officer Schuyler Hospital. “It is through these protocols and the testing of staff that occurred this week, that we identified a confirmed COVID-19 case of an employee working at Seneca View. Once the positive test came back, we proactively tested residents of that particular unit where the employee had been working and identified two positive cases among our residents. We immediately notified all of our residents and families to keep them informed.”

The safety measures include restricting visitation, required use of daily PPE by staff, regular washing of hands, the installation of plexiglass shields in key areas, social distancing in all areas, hand sanitizing stations, screening of everyone entering the facility, COVID-19 testing of staff, enhanced cleaning throughout the facility, and more.

“We will continue to maintain the highest level of safety protocols, including ongoing re-testing of employees and residents, along with aggressive on-going surveillance to minimize the risk of additional cases,” states Dr. Martin Stallone, President & CEO of Cayuga Health. “We are working closely with Schuyler County Public Health and the New York State Department of Health for response coordination and follow-up contact tracing.”

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About Cayuga Health
Cayuga Health (CH) has two hospitals, Cayuga Medical Center and Schuyler Hospital, as well as a multispecialty group, Cayuga Medical Associates. Combined employment, including affiliated organizations, is over 2,200 employees. CH is clinically linked to Mayo Medical Laboratories, Rochester Regional Health for cardiac services, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the University of Rochester for neurosciences.