County officials 'knocking on wood' Westmoreland Manor remains virus-free

As nursing and personal care homes have been the hardest hit by the coronavirus throughout the country and state, precautions put in place have so far enabled the 400-bed Westmoreland Manor to be spared, officials said Tuesday.

The county-owned nursing home, the largest of the 66 nursing home or personal care facilities in Westmoreland County, has yet to record a single case among residents and staff as the pandemic has circulated throughout the community.

“It’s a combination of proper planning and managers and staff taking their job seriously,” Commissioner Sean Kertes said.

Nearly all of the Manor’s roughly 500 staffers are county employees. The facility is run by Quest Healthcare Development Inc., a private company based near Murrysville that owns and operates nursing homes throughout Pennsylvania.

Manor administrators did not return calls for comment but instead issued a statement that said multiple precautions enacted since mid-March ensured the safety of residents and staff.

County officials barred all visitation at the Manor on March 13, with exceptions in place for end-of-life residents.

Other precautions enacted include the temperature checks of all residents and staff who enter the Manor, implementation of strict hand-washing procedures, a requirement that employees wear face masks at all times while in the facility and have gowns, eye protection and gloves while interacting with residents in isolation or diagnosed with respiratory illnesses of unknown origin, according to the county’s statement.

Procedures are in place to notify a resident’s family members as part of an aggressive contact tracing program should someone connected to the facility be diagnosed with covid-19, officials said.

Commissioners said they are unaware if any residents or Manor staffers have been tested for the virus.

“It’s remarkable for a nursing home facility of the Manor’s size to not have any residents tested positive over the last six weeks,” Commissioner Gina Cerilli said. “The employees and staff are being very vigilant with hopes of that continuing.”

According to the state’s Department of Health, 131 residents and 28 staffers in seven nursing homes and personal care centers across the county have tested positive for covid-19. Coroner Ken Bacha has said nearly all of the 30 local deaths attributed to virus have ties to those homes.

Nursing homes have been the state’s biggest hot spots for the virus.

Allegheny County health officials reported 257 residents and 84 employees at 31 facilities tested positive for the virus, while 58 nursing home residents have died. Ten residents from the county’s Kane Regional nursing home in Glen Hazel had died from the coronavirus. County officials said 62 of the 96 Glen Hazel residents, as well as 36 staffers, have tested positive.

In Beaver County, nearly 250 coronavirus cases have been traced to one long-term care facility, Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center.

Statewide, nursing home and personal care facilities accounted for 1,089 of Pennsylvania’s 1,716 total coronavirus deaths. State officials reported 7,360 residents and 920 employees at 452 different facilities tested positive.

Westmoreland County Public Safety Director Roland Mertz said his staff has been in daily contact with nursing home administrators to ensure each facility is stocked with personal protection equipment and has enough support in place to avert a potential outbreak.

Many of the county facilities enacted similar precautions as did the Manor, but a combination of bad luck and unanticipated results led to positive cases.

“They were very aggressive and put a lot of rules in place very quickly,” Mertz said of the Manor. “They’ve done a good job down there, and I’m really knocking on wood it continues.”