Inflatable Christmas costume worn by hospital worker is blamed for infecting 43 emergency department employees with COVID-19 at California hospital
- 43 employees of the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department tested positive for COVID-19 between December 27 and January 1
- Officials are investigating whether an air-powered costume worn by an employee on Christmas Day may be related to the outbreak
- “ Any exposure, if it had happened, would have been completely harmless and quite accidental given the person had no COVID symptoms, ” hospital officials said
- Emergency personnel were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but would not have achieved immunity without the second injection
- All infected are now in isolation and the hospital is undergoing a thorough cleaning
At least 43 staff at a California hospital were infected with COVID-19 in the past week, and officials are investigating whether the outbreak may have been caused by an inflatable Christmas costume worn by an employee for the holidays.
Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department executives tested positive between December 27 and January 1.
Officials said a staff member appeared briefly at the emergency department on Christmas Day in an inflatable, air-powered costume.
The employee who wore the suit has not been disclosed.
“A staff member briefly appeared in the emergency department in an air-powered suit on Dec. 25,” Irene Chavez, senior vice president and area manager of Kaiser’s San Jose Medical Center, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
“ Any exposure, if it had occurred, would have been completely harmless and quite accidental, as the person had no COVID symptoms and was only trying to cheer up the spirits of those around them during a very stressful time, ” she said .
At least 43 staffers at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center Emergency Department tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week and officials say an inflatable costume worn by a staff worker on Christmas Day may be to blame
The emergency responders were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but the hospital said they were “ not expected to have achieved immunity when this exposure occurred. ”
Officials added: “It is not only important that everyone gets vaccinated, but also gets the required two doses of vaccine to be protected.”
Health officials say people should get the two doses of the vaccine to be protected.
The hospital is now investigating the outbreak.
The hospital’s emergency department is still open and safe to receive patients and all areas of the ward undergo a thorough clean-up while the infected go into isolation.
The emergency responders were the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine less than 10 days ago, but the hospital said they were “ not expected to have achieved immunity when this exposure occurred. ” An opinion from a Kaiser Permanente employee who was vaccinated above December 14
The outbreak comes as cases grow in California’s epicenter, with intensive care capacity in the Bay Area dropping to 5.1 percent on Saturday. A view of a nurse in PPE in the ICU at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana on Dec. 18 above
In total, California has recorded more than 2.3 million COVID-19 cases and more than 26,000 virus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic. A view of nurses caring for a COVID-19 patient at the Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, California on Dec. 18 above
“Obviously, we no longer allow air-powered suits in our facilities,” Chavez said.
“ At the same time, we are taking steps to strengthen security measures among staff, including physical distance and not congregating in break areas, not sharing food or drink and masks at all times, ” the hospital said, according to ABC7.
DailyMail.com has been in touch for more information.
Nearly 40,000 health workers at Kaiser Permanente have already received COVID-19 vaccines and more are expected soon.
The outbreak comes as cases increase in California’s epicenter, with intensive care capacity in the Bay Area dropping to 5.1 percent on Saturday.
In total, California has recorded more than 2.3 million COVID-19 cases and more than 26,000 virus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic. Nationally, more than 20 million cases and more than 350,000 deaths have been reported.