August 20, 2020 3:50 a.m.

Officials with Mercy Medical Center are questioning the methodology used in a report from the Oregon Health Authority which lists the hospital as the location of a “workplace outbreak” of COVID-19.

Wednesday’s OHA Weekly Report has 31 pages of data regarding COVID-19 including a chart of “active workplace outbreaks with five or more confirmed COVID-19 cases”. The report said Mercy has had ten cases.

The Douglas County COVID-19 Response Team originally announced an outbreak at Mercy, which was confirmed by OHA on August 5th but not listed in its report until this week.

Kathleen Nickel of Mercy said originally there was one single employee whose exposure was not workplace related, plus six presumptive positive cases. Nickel said all of those have tested negative. She said now OHA has included two additional employees as presumptive positives, though they have tested negative as well. She said in addition, OHA is attributing an employee of another organization that has tested positive to their workplace. Nickel said the person at Mercy that OHA is attributing the exposure to, has also tested negative.

Nickel said the hospital still has only one positive employee, which was not workplace exposure. She said all other employees have tested negative.

Nickel said no patients have been exposed, due to the proper use of Personal Protective Equipment.