WRH to get new testing equipment; cases continue to rise

Whitfield Regional Hospital continues the front-line fight against COVID-19, and it may get some more help later this week.

CEO/Administrator Doug Brewer said Tuesday the hospital is one of only 15 in the state that will receive one of the new machines to determine a positive coronavirus test within five minutes.

The drawback is that only 10 test kits will be coming with the machine, so it will be reserved for those patients at highest risk, said Brewer. More test kits should be delivered later, he hoped.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Alabama Department of Public Health reported 24 positive cases for residents in Marengo County, The county has recorded one death. The mobile testing unit at WRH had conducted 234 tests, according to the ADPH.

Brewer added that 13 tests are pending. He said about half of the positive tests recorded by WRH have been patients from other counties. The ADPH determines numbers by the patient’s residence, not by where the test is administered.

Two of those positive cases are being treated in the hospital, and another six patients considered “people of interest” are awaiting test results. In addition, two critically ill patients were transported to UAB Medical Center in Birmingham for further treatment.

On a positive note, the hospital Tuesday will begin a telehealth connection with UAB for infectious diseases. The UAB physicians will work with the WRH hospitalist.

It is “really rare” for a hospital to have such access to infectious disease physicians who are the best in the world, not just the United States, said Brewer.

Brewer said the hospital personnel is holding up “pretty well,” although “they still fear for themselves and their families.” They are all “holding our breath to see if it’s going to grow,” he added.