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Editor's note: Do you have a family member in the pediatric unit at the Wanaque Nursing and Rehabilitation Center or a child affected by the virus outbreak? NJ.com would like to hear from you. You can reach us at (732) 902-4559, or write to Susan Livio at [email protected], Spencer Kent at [email protected] or Ted Sherman at [email protected].
The installation where 11 children died as a result of a viral epidemic has met the deadline set by the state to separate the "medically fragile" children from those who have the virus, or nearly two months after the first child is infected.
The Wanaque Nursing and Rehabilitation Center is facing an epidemic of adenovirus, a respiratory disease that causes flu-like symptoms or colds, but can be much more harmful for medically-frail people.
At least 34 children have been exposed to the virus since the beginning of the epidemic in late September, said Health Commissioner Shereef Elnahal.
Doracase Dolcin, age 4, was the first child to die of the virus on October 8th.
2 children were in "irreversible shock" and died when they finally arrived at the emergency room amid a viral epidemic
The Ministry of Health ordered Wanaque officials to separate the patients on November 21, but they met the requirement four days earlier. In doing so, a call for volunteers from the state medical reserve corps was canceled, the department said in a statement released on Saturday.
"The ministry has imposed these requirements on the facility to ensure a safer environment for these immunocompromised children," Elnahal said in a statement. "We determined that separating sick patients from asymptomatic residents is one of the most important measures to prevent the spread of the virus."
The facility stated that it was impossible to separate residents due to lack of space.
Beginning Monday, the Wanaque Center will also need to hire a Certified Infection Control Practitioner and a state-licensed physician with a certificate of infectious disease counseling, the department said.
Readmissions to the institution will also be re-evaluated on Monday as these consultants begin work.
They should have talked to us earlier about the viral outbreak in the NY facility, says Mom in a lawsuit
The epidemic of adenovirus that plagues Wanaque Center began when children began to get sick on September 26, according to the state health department, when the first child was diagnosed with a respiratory disease.
But it is only two children already dead that the Wanaque Center informed the local authorities of the Department of Health of a group of respiratory diseases on October 9th.
The state sent inspectors only on October 21st.
Editor Ted Sherman contributed to this report.
Sophie Nieto-Munoz can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her to @snietomunoz. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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