Centre County coronavirus cases continue to increase as number of Pa. cases eclipses 1,000
Centre County gained one new case of the coronavirus on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases in the county to eight, according to the state Department of Health.
The county saw its first case of COVID-19 on Friday.
Clearfield County, which had its first confirmed case on Tuesday, also gained one case. With Wednesday’s update, Lycoming County now has its first COVID-19 case.
There are currently 1,127 cases in Pennsylvania, with the majority occurring in the Philadelphia area. The state is up to 11 deaths.
“Based on the experience in other areas, we expect the number of patients who are screened, tested and diagnosed to increase over the coming weeks,” said Dr. Nirmal Joshi, chief medical officer at Mount Nittany Health, on Monday. “We continue to follow guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control for treating any COVID-19 person under investigation or a suspected COVID-19 positive case and preventing the transmission of infection within our facilities.”
According to Anissa Ilie, a spokesperson for Mount Nittany Medical Center, no patients who tested positive for COVID-19 are or have been hospitalized there. On Friday, Mount Nittany announced that two patients tested positive within the health system and were at home in isolation.
As a precaution, Mount Nittany will screen every person who comes through its facilities and stop every vehicle for screening unless it is an emergency vehicle or person headed to the emergency department.
On Tuesday, Penn State confirmed its first case of the virus on its University Park campus.
Anyone who believes they came into contact with someone who might have the coronavirus is advised to monitor their health and call their primary care provider if they develop symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms include cough, fever and shortness of breath. Symptoms can appear in as few as two or as long as 14 days after exposure.
“It’s essential for everyone to use everyday precautions to stay safe,” said Paul Guillard, a doctor with Mount Nittany Physician Group Internal Medicine, said Monday. “As a primary care physician, I routinely give my patients several steps to take to help keep themselves, their loved ones and our community healthy and well.”
The DOH and CDC recommend washing your hands with soap and water, avoiding touching your eyes, nose, face and mouth, practicing social distancing, staying home if you are sick and covering coughs and sneezes.
This story was originally published March 25, 2020 at 12:16 PM.
