Drive-thru testing is offered three days per week at the Allegany County Fairgrounds, 11400 Moss Avenue, Cumberland, MD. Testing clinics are held Mondays from 2 to 7 p.m., and Wednesdays and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. No appointment is needed, but pre-registration is strongly encouraged to minimize wait times at the clinic. You can pre-register for testing by going to health.maryland.gov/allegany and clicking on the pre-registration link under “COVID-19 Information” on the right side of the page.
Free Community COVID Testing is available in the Petersburg City Parking Lot
Tuesdays 11-5 Fridays 11-3
There were Thirteen (13) new cases today reported in Grant County.
Two new positives from Schools and Two new staff from GCRRCC today.
2,068 Total COVID Cases
• 1734 Confirmed Positive COVID cases
• 334 Probable COVID cases (Probable cases are those that have a positive result from a rapid antigen test).
• 1,808 Total Recovered
• 226 Active Cases uncertain how many hospitalized as some have transferred, and some have not been able to be reached.
• 30 Deaths listed as COVID related
Grant County COVID cases:
July .…..7
August .…146
September ….476
Please take this seriously. Masks and Social Distancing is recommended for all.
Area hospitals including Grant are full and have had to request additional ventilators from the state emergency response team.
Pfizer Vaccine available for all age 12 yrs. and older
or Moderna for anyone age 18 or older
Grant County Health Department Call 304-257-4922
Call Mt. Storm Health Center for more information on their COVID vaccine availability and dates
Call 304-693-7616
Grant Memorial Hospital COMMUNITY testing is no longer available
Free Community COVID Testing
City Parking Lot
Tuesdays 11-5 Fridays 11-3
Testing By Appointment:
Grove Street Health Care Center 304-257-2451 or
Mt. Top Medical Center 304-693-7616.
Valley Health is treating an increasing number of COVID-19 patients and now the health system’s resources are being stretched significantly.
“Our caregivers have worked double shifts, nights, weekends and holidays to
save patients and fight COVID-19 in our community. They have shown remarkable
resiliency, but they, like all of us, are growing tired. We are asking our
community to pull together and help end the spread of this virus,” said Mark
Nantz, President and CEO of Valley Health.
Valley Health’s six hospitals are currently treating 140 patients for COVID-19,
about 85% of whom are unvaccinated. According to Iyad Sabbagh, MD, Chief
Physician Executive, the most severely ill patients are unvaccinated,
underscoring the importance of COVID-19 vaccination.
“The data and scientific evidence overwhelmingly points to the safety and
efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination,” said Dr. Sabbagh. “I implore residents to
get vaccinated, continue to follow masking recommendations and consider
implementing social distancing measures such as canceling events where the
virus could easily spread. The Delta variant we are now confronting is more
contagious than previous versions of this virus and is spreading rapidly in our
community.”
According to Dr. Sabbagh, the daily count of hospitalized patients, their
acuity level, and vaccination status changes quickly and makes it challenging
to provide an accurate snapshot of how many community members are being treated
across the system at any point in time.
“Within hours, our count can change dramatically. We are also seeing an
increase in the number of patients being dishonest about their vaccination
status, which makes it hard to share that data with our community,” Dr. Sabbagh
said. He noted that patients fear they will not receive care if they share with
staff that they are unvaccinated.
“Our job is to care for every individual who comes to us,” Sabbagh asserted.
“While we want the public to know that vaccination is the best way to stop the
spread of COVID, we also want them to know that we’re here to care for them,
regardless of their vaccination status. It is our mission as healthcare
providers.”
Valley Health previously reported that 97% of its caregivers have either been
vaccinated or been granted medical or religious exemptions. Additionally, the
health system has been very successful in recruiting new staff to fill
vacancies left by employees who chose not to comply with the vaccination
requirement. Valley Health has seen an increase in new hires, and overall has
had a net gain of staff since announcing the policy in July. Even with the
increase, however, nurses and caregivers have worked extra shifts and long
hours to care for COVID-19 patients, who often have more severe and complex
illness, and stay in the hospital longer than the average patient.
“Our challenge is not staffing due to our COVID-19 vaccine requirement. Our
challenge is the sheer number of severely ill COVID-19 patients presenting for
care at our hospitals,” commented Nantz.
Valley Health’s response to the patient surge includes bringing on additional
resources and implementing measures to care for patients and protect staff:
Additional ICU Capacity Added
With all available ICU beds filled last Friday, WMC opened an additional unit
to accommodate the number of severely ill patients needing care. As of Sunday,
there were 23 COVID positive patients in the Emergency Department with limited
bed availability, and all ICUs in the region were taking 24 hours or more to
accept transfers.
Hospital Visiting Curtailed
Patient visitation at Valley Health’s six hospitals is being curtailed to
reduce the risk of transmission between visitors, patients and caregivers. In
the last several weeks, Valley Health has seen an increase in disruptive
visitor behavior, including refusal to abide by masking requirements while
visiting.Visitation exceptions are being made at Winchester Medical Center for
Labor and Delivery, Mother/Baby, Pediatrics and NICU, and at all facilities for
special circumstances including end-of-life care, on a case-by-case basis.
Visit www.valleyhealthlink.com/visitation for
updates and details.
Elective and Non-Essential Surgeries Requiring Post-Operative Hospital Beds
Postponed
This week, Winchester Medical Center and Warren Memorial Hospital will begin
postponing elective and non-essential procedures and surgeries that require an
overnight hospital stay after surgery. Outpatient surgeries and procedures that
do not require postoperative beds are continuing without interruption. This
will not impact procedures and surgeries for patients whose condition is
emergent or urgent, as determined by their physician. This decision was made
after thoughtful consideration and is consistent with the guidance being
provided by governmental, clinical, and regulatory organizations.
“Our top priorities are to protect our care team and all those we are caring
for,” said Dr. Sabbagh. He expressed appreciation to Valley Health’s caregivers
during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’ve been so impressed with our team’s
commitment, resourcefulness and resiliency,” he said.
“We are still all in this together,” Nantz reflected. “We can help our coworkers,
patients, families and friends respond safely, rationally and thoughtfully to
create the best possible outcomes. We can listen to one another, be thoughtful,
kind, and understand that we are dealing with this crisis together, not
separately.”
Visit valleyhealthlink.com/coronavirus for updates on Valley Health visitation policies and other service adjustments.