9 In 10 LA County Nursing Home Workers Know Of Coronavirus Cases Among Their Colleagues, Survey Finds
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Nearly 90% of certified nursing assistants and other frontline workers at Los Angeles County nursing homes say they have either known of or suspected coronavirus cases among colleagues at their own facility, according to a new survey released Friday.
The report, released by the California Health Care Foundation and Truth on Call, surveyed 353 certified nursing assistants, food service, janitorial service, housekeeping and laundry workers at nursing homes statewide.
Statewide, 76% of those surveyed said they knew or suspected of a fellow worker at their facility who contracted COVID-19.
In L.A. County, that rate jumped to 89%, according to the CHCF report.
Furthermore, 76% of L.A. County nursing home workers surveyed said there were infections among the residents of their facility, as opposed to 50% statewide.
"Frontline health workers in nursing homes are reporting disturbingly high numbers of COVID-19 cases among the staff of these facilities," said CHCF market analysis director Kristof Stremikis in a statement. "The trend is even worse in Los Angeles County, which has experienced a noticeable spike in cases, as well as in facilities that serve higher percentages of Black and Latino residents."
On Thursday, the L.A. County Department of Public Health reported 4,592 new cases of coronavirus, a single-day record since the pandemic began. The county death toll has now reached 3,988.
According to the latest numbers on the LACDPH website, there have been at least 1,559 coronavirus deaths to residents at residential congregate and acute care settings, which include nursing homes, assisted living facilities, jails, prisons, treatment centers and supportive living facilities.
In early May, residents at nursing homes were making up more than half of all coronavirus deaths in the county.