New COVID outbreak at Dellridge nursing home in Paramus has left two dead, 36 residents positive

Lindy Washburn
NorthJersey.com

An ongoing outbreak of COVID-19 at the Dellridge Health & Rehabilitation Center in Paramus has left two residents dead, with confirmed cases diagnosed in 36 residents and five staff members. State and local heath officials are investigating.

The outbreak at the 96-bed facility on Farview Avenue comes as a second wave of coronavirus infections is causing a resurgence of sickness and hospitalizations in New Jersey.

Active outbreaks are currently reported at 164 long-term care facilities in New Jersey, including 15 in Bergen County. Hospitalizations for COVID-19 surpassed 800 for the third day in a row Friday, a peak not seen since July.  

A rendering of a proposed addition to the Dellridge Health & Rehabilitation Center in Paramus.

Nursing homes were especially hard hit in the first wave of the pandemic, accounting for nearly half of the more than 16,000 deaths statewide, and they remain hot spots for the disease's spread.

One of the issues that has come under sharp scrutiny is the discharge of COVID-positive patients from hospitals to nursing homes.

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The sister of one Dellridge resident said Friday that her brother became infected with coronavirus while a patient at Hackensack Meridian Health-Pascack Valley Medical Center in Westwood, and was discharged to the nursing home over the weekend. 

Rafaelina Gonzalez said her 64-year-old brother, Nelson Gonzalez, is currently sick with COVID-19 in a room at the nursing home with two other residents. Her brother, who is physically and mentally disabled, tested negative for the coronavirus when he was admitted to the Westwood hospital on Oct 12 for a surgical procedure, she said. She is his guardian. 

Since the procedure, she said, he has tested positive twice — on Oct. 14 and 18. "It happened in the hospital." she said. "My brother got COVID in the hospital."

The Dellridge outbreak is the subject of "ongoing investigation," said Nancy Kearney, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Health. She said the department "is working with local health authorities to collect additional information regarding potential transmission of the virus."

That "includes examining any connection to the hospital," she said when asked about possible linkages to Pascack Valley hospital.  

All health care facilities, including hospitals, are required to report outbreaks to their local health department, which investigates them with support from state health officials, Kearney said.

Eleven of the hospital's 800 staff members "either tested positive for the virus or are in self-quarantine due to a potential exposure outside of the workplace," a statement late Friday from Pascack Valley Medical Center said. The hospital declined to provide further details about staff or patient health, "due to confidentiality."

The hospital conducts daily temperature checks of all patients and staff upon entering, and requires staff to complete a daily online form to report COVID-19 related symptoms, the statement said. "We continue to follow rigorous protocols established by the federal Centers for Disease Control and the New Jersey Department of Health," it said.

Calls to the Dellridge administrator were not returned. Dellridge had 17 resident deaths earlier in the pandemic, according to state Department of Health records.

The facility is owned by the Family of Care health system, which has other long-term care facilities in Woodcliff Lake, Paterson and Montclair. The Montclair nursing home saw 15 residents and its administrator die in the early days of the pandemic.

Judith Migliaccio, the Paramus health officer, said her office received daily reports from the nursing home and was working with the state Health Department. She did not know of a linkage between the nursing home outbreak and any hospital, she said. 

Lindy Washburn is a senior health care reporter for NorthJersey.com. To keep up-to-date about how changes in the medical world affect the health of you and your family, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: washburn@northjersey.com 

Twitter: @lindywa