Routine employee testing at Norton Sound Health Corporation revealed a new positive case of COVID-19 on Saturday. NSHC says the latest patient is a village-based employee with the health corporation.
Although NSHC did not say which community the employee works in, it did say that the patient is currently self-isolating. How the individual came to contract the virus is currently unknown. However, NSHC has sent a response team to the community to test the patient’s close contacts.
The state Section of Epidemiology and Public Health Nursing will do contact tracing and further investigate this case. There are currently 14 active cases of COVID-19 in the Norton Sound region, with a total of 40 confirmed since the pandemic hit Western Alaska.
If you are experiencing symptoms of the coronavirus, such as a fever, coughing, loss of taste or smell, then you can call your local clinic or Nome’s Primary Clinic at 443-3333.
Image at top: The COVID-19 testing drive-thru tent outside the Norton Sound Regional Hospital. Photo from Reba Lean, NSHC (2020).
