Federal official in a retirement home implicated in the epidemic of adenovirus that killed 11 children, according to a federal report

The epidemic of adenovirus that killed 11 children in a nursing home in New Jersey would be partly blamed on facility leaders who did not know the extent of the spread of the virus and were not reacting enough quickly after the patients have been sick.

A federal report indicates that the Wanaque Center's pediatric medical director for nursing and rehabilitation told the inspectors that he was unaware of the number of children infected with adenovirus nor how a person in his position was supposed to respond to the outbreak, according to Northjersey. .com.

"I knew we had a problem after the fourth death," said the medical director, who did not give his name, to the investigators, according to the report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services.

The children began to get sick on September 26th, but the series of illnesses was not reported to the authorities until October 9th. By mid-November, at least 33 children and one staff member were ill and 11 sick children had died. .

Wanaque administrator Rowena Bautista challenged the findings of the federal report and said the center had appealed the "allegations".

"We are exasperated that after a cursory review, federal investigators have written a report sown with factual errors, disregard for medical judgment and blatant misrepresentation of how viruses spread," he said. Bautista.

"Although the epidemic is a tragic event that has left us heartbroken, it has not been caused by delayed treatment or any other unfounded allegation contained in the CMS report", she said.

The outbreak was brought under control on December 11, Bautista said. Wanaque is still banned by the state from admitting new patients to its pediatric ventilation unit, according to the Associated Press.

Elisha Fieldstadt

Elisha Fieldstadt is a late-breaking journalist for NBC News.