The WAAY 31 I-Team is talking to concerned families and employees after learning 3 more residents at Tut Fann Veterans Home have died since Friday, bringing the total to 10 in less than three weeks.
You're taking a live look at tut fann veterans home in huntsville.
Tonight - the waay 31 i-team learned 3 more residents there died since friday.
That brings the total to 10 in less than three weeks.
Thanks for joining us tonight -- i'm dan shaffer.
And i'm najahe sherman.
It's a story we started telling you about more than a week ago as families and employees raised concerns about what's going on inside the home.
Waay 31's sydney martin is live in huntsville tonight after working to learn more about the deaths.
Dan, najahe- today i discovered 7 of the 10 residents here at tut fann who have died in recent weeks - tested positive for coronavirus at some point prior to their deaths.
But right now the state v-a and management group over the home- are waiting for the alabama department of public health to determine each of those cases cause of death.
Today- the company over day to day operations at tut fan h-m-r veterans services told me 27 employees at tut fann tested positive for cornavirus since the pandemic started back in march.
5 of them are confirmed recoveries and are back at work.
The company told us investigations are still underway by the alabama department of public for the cause of deaths of the two employees who have died in the last three weeks.
Waay 31 did learn one of those employees also tested positive for coronavirus prior to their death.
Today, h-m-r veterans services also told me employees assigned to the covid team stay isolated from the rest of the staff and patients.
Employees emailed the waay 31 i-team concerned because they're forced to wear fabric gowns instead of disposable gowns.
H-m-r services did confirm employees wear the same fabric gown for their entire shift.
The company also pointed out the cdc along with the prevention and the association for professionals in infection control and epidemiology indicated wearing one gown per person withinn a covid positive unit is acceptable.
Today- i asked huntsville hopsital c-e-o about this practice- and if it's used at the hospital.
"that would not be the preference, but it's better than nothing at all.
So if they can't get the ones that they need and that's all they got, wear them all day, launder them, and do it all over again."
Spillers told me the hospital is using disposable gowns because they have enough of them.
H-m-r veterans services- who runs the day to day operations over tut fann told me because of a limited supply of disposable gowns, they were forced to use fabric gowns.
Now the state v-a told me last week it can take more than 2 weeks to determine if a death was covid related- and right now none of the 10 deaths have been determined.
The WAAY 31 I-Team learned 12 veterans previously diagnosed with coronavirus died at Tutt Fann in recent weeks but more than a..
