By JACK FICHTER/Sentinel staff
Testing kits for coronavirus (COVID-19) remain in short supply in Cape May and Atlantic counties, with most of the tests being administered to those admitted to a hospital.
Cape May County Health Department Public Health Coordinator Kevin Thomas said some doctors were conducting COVID-19 testing on their own as well as a couple of urgent care clinics. He said testing was sporadic, with some running out of tests.
“It’s difficult to get the test. However, if you meet all the criteria, you’ll have to talk to your doctor and they’ll refer you to the hospital,” he said. “You can’t just show up for tests.”
While local residents may see drive-through testing in Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey, it has not been made available here.
“There’s no resources to do it,” Thomas said.
He said COVID-19 tests taking place in northern New Jersey were being conducted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“Try to get a kit down here,” Thomas said. “The hospital’s calling me saying ‘we’re running out of test kits.’”
He said the county Health Department does not have test kits. Thomas said he has asked for tests from the state for the past three weeks but received nothing.
“How do you open a drive-through when you’ve got nothing from them?” he asked. “They haven’t given me a dime either, no money at all.”
Three to four weeks ago the state Department of Health stated it received $1.7 million.
“I have not seen dime one and even if I did have dime one, I can’t order anything because it’s way back ordered,” Thomas said.
He said he hoped the situation would soon change. Thomas said he believed test kits would be sent to densely populated areas with many cases of the virus.
“COVID-19 is out there. If you feel sick with a fever, you probably have it,” Thomas said. “The probability of having it is high.”
He said flu is also out there but a person should treat it as COVID-19 and isolate at home instead of waiting to be tested.
“It would be great to have the test to rule it out because the flu is still in the neighborhood,” Thomas said.
If a person reaches a high level of breathing distress, they should contact a hospital, Thomas said.
He said he sent a letter to campground owners telling them to delay their opening.
Cape Regional Health Systems is doing COVID-19 testing on a case-by-case basis, according to marketing and public relations coordinator Susan Staeger.
“What we’re asking the public is to follow the CDC guidelines, which is if you have a fever of 100.4 or higher with a dry cough and shortness of breath, that you should call your primary care doctor and they will screen you over the phone, ask you questions, and based on that, give you instructions,” Staeger said.
She said testing is not across the board but if you’ve been exposed to COVID-19 and you have symptoms and you end up at the hospital, they test on a case-by-case basis.
“There’s not an abundance of test kits available anywhere, let alone in Cape May County,” Staeger said.
Cape Regional implemented a no-visitor policy with one designated support person allowed for the following areas: Hospice and End-of-Life Care, Maternity and Pediatric. One designated support person is permitted if necessary for Same Day Surgery or Ambulatory Practice site and Emergency Room.
Potential visitors who meet those exceptions will be screened for symptoms of fever and respiratory illness before being allowed to accompany a patient within the medical center or ambulatory practice site, she said.
Staeger said most of Cape Regional’s primary care offices have suspended office hours.
“It’s very, very limited in what we are providing on a nonemergency basis,” she said.
According to Jennifer Tornetta, director of public affairs, AtlantiCare is not testing patients in a widespread manner for coronavirus at this time.
“We are following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) guidelines for monitoring and caring for people who might be at risk for coronavirus, flu and other viruses and respiratory illnesses,” she stated. “This includes only testing patients who are ill enough to be hospitalized and for whom other sources of respiratory illness have been ruled out.”
She said AtlantiCare has a policy and plan for a potential influx of flu and other illnesses that addresses how it cares for patients, doctors, staff and the community.
“Our prevention measures, which we practice every day throughout all our sites, are not isolated to novel coronavirus, as flu and other types of respiratory viruses are circulating in our region at this time,” she said.
At 12:30 p.m. March 23, Cape Regional Health Systems sent an alert through the county Chamber of Commerce seeking protective masks or coverall suits that could be donated to the hospital from the business community.
Respondents were asked to contact Executive Director Tom Piratzky at (609) 463-4042 or tpiratzky@caperegional.com.
All AtlantiCare facilities follow all the protocols of the CDC and the New Jersey Department of Health to ensure the safety of patients, visitors, staff, providers and the community, Tornetta said.
“As part of this plan for a possible increase in the number of patients seeking care for flu, coronaviruses, including COVID-19, and other viral illnesses, AtlantiCare set up temporary triage tents outside the Atlantic City and Mainland campuses on Saturday, March 14,” she said. “Should we have an increase in patients, we would open the tents to screen patients with flu-like symptoms. We would then quickly screen and release them if they do not need further treatment. If we determine in this screening that patients need further treatment or evaluation, we would send them to the Emergency Department.”
“This is a precautionary, preparedness measure at this point,” she continued. “Tents are in Emergency Department Provider parking spaces at Mainland and outside the Emergency Department entrance at City. This is part of our standard plan for how we prepare to care for a possible increase in patients as a result of flu or other illnesses in an epidemic or pandemic situation.”
AtlantiCare enhanced its restrictions that had already prohibited nearly all hospital visitors. Trauma and emergency patients can have visitors or support persons only if they have severe emergencies. No hospital visitors will be allowed until further notice, with the limited exceptions of the Emergency and Trauma which will determine the number of visitors for severe medical emergencies only, such as heart attack, trauma or stroke.
AtlantiCare’s urgent care location in the Marmora section of Upper Township has been temporarily closed. Hours of operation have been temporarily changed for urgent care locations. The Atlantic City location is operating 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Urgent care is still open from 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. seven days a week in Cape May, Egg Harbor Township and Somers Point.
For AtlantiCare Surgery Centers, all operations have been consolidated to its Egg Harbor Township location and it has postponed elective procedures while identifying and prioritizing time-sensitive cases that need to be completed in the next month.
On March 22, Shore Medical Center released information that patients were being treated at the hospital and suspected of having a COVID-19 virus infection.
“Shore continues to follow its informed and precautionary COVID-19 triage processes when patients present to the hospital for evaluation to mitigate the spread of the virus, protect and keep our staff safe and care for the patients and families,” stated a release. “Recently, one of the patients hospitalized at Shore was a confirmed positive for COVID-19 and we anticipate being informed of a second positive hospitalized patient. Both remain in respiratory isolation and are in stable condition.”
Shore Medical Center is requesting all in the community heed the call to social distance and first seek an electronic contact with your primary care provider before visiting any medical setting for symptoms unless you would otherwise seek 9-1-1 for symptoms that need urgent attention. For those seeking electronic contact with a primary care provider, Shore Physicians Group is offering telehealth visits. For phone numbers to providers, visit shorephysiciansgroup.com.
Shore Medical Center has also adopted a no-visitor policy with the same exceptions as other local hospitals.
The Atlantic County Division of Public Health is sharing the guidance of the CDC and state Department of Health, which call for testing to be provided for those at highest risk due to limited resources at this time. High-risk individuals include those with severe symptoms, those who are hospitalized, health care workers, long-term care facility residents, those 65 and older with symptoms and underlying health conditions.
Individuals with no symptoms are not recommended to be tested. Individuals with mild symptoms should stay home if they are sick and follow the guidance of their health care provider. All residents should continue to practice social distancing and avoid large crowds and gatherings, practice safe hygiene and stay home if they are sick, said Linda Gilmore, Atlantic County public information officer.
Meanwhile, LabCorp is not collecting specimens for COVID-19 testing.
“LabCorp has been working to address the spread of COVID-19, in keeping with our mission to improve health and improve lives,” according to a press release.
Those who believe they have been exposed to COVID-19 are asked to immediately contact a physician or health care provider. Testing must be collected by a physician or an authorized health care provider. LabCorp personnel are not able to collect the specimens in LabCorp patient service centers.
“Out of consideration for other patients and our employees, we respectfully ask that individuals who meet criteria for the risk of having COVID-19 do not enter LabCorp locations,” the release stated. “For other services, such as routine lab testing, our patient service centers remain open across the United States.”