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Well-intentioned holiday care became fatal after an employee at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in San Jose died from a COVID-19 case found in a visitor dressed in a tree costume. Christmas inflated.
Hospital officials confirmed the death in a statement provided to this news agency.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by this terrible loss,” a spokesperson for Kaiser said in the statement. “We are supporting our employees during this difficult period.”
Hospital officials initially reported an outbreak of 44 infections dating back to the Christmas reunion, but it would be the first death associated with the December 25 informal visit. All 44, including the deceased employee, were working in the emergency department that day, according to NBC Bay Area, which also described the first victim of the outbreak as a woman who worked as a check-in clerk in the department.
No patients were reportedly infected, but officials said over the weekend that they were performing additional testing for anyone who had been exposed. Employees confirmed or suspected of having the virus are urged to stay at home, and the medical center’s emergency department has undergone a thorough cleaning, officials said.
The costumed spreader of the virus has not been identified beyond being a colleague at the hospital. However, their visit was not approved by the hospital, officials said.
Because COVID-19 is airborne, hospital officials are investigating whether the inflatable nature of the suit and its air-circulating machine could have led to a greater spread of infectious particles.
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