by SHANE FARLEY and BRADY BAUMAN
Updated: Monday, 6:53 p.m.
Samples sent to the State Health Department tested negative for COVID-19, according to a news release Monday evening from the City-Cowley County Health Department.
The City-Cowley County Health Department sent samples to the State Health Department after a person in Cowley County was hospitalized Sunday with respiratory distress and fever.
As a precaution, an event for William Newton Hospital Sunday afternoon in Winfield was canceled about an hour before it was supposed to begin. U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran was also scheduled to attend and speak.
“As community members you are urged to please practice good personal hygiene habits that help control the spread of all disease; wash your hands often, restrict touching your face especially your eyes and mouth, cover your coughs and sneezes,” Cowley County Public Health Officer Thomas Langer stated in the news release. “If you are ill please stay home and contact your health care provider. Influenza, colds, and now dust, pollen and smoke are all present in our current daily environments and each can cause respiratory distress. Please do not overreact and panic.”
Monday morning:
The City-Cowley County Health Department said in a news release Monday morning that results are still pending regarding a suspected coronavirus case that canceled an event at William Newton Hospital in Winfield on Sunday.
“It has been widely reported that a person in Cowley County has been hospitalized suffering from respiratory distress and fever,” the health department stated. “As a precautionary measure the State Health Department, the City-Cowley County Health Department and William Newton Memorial Hospital are cooperating and have submitted samples to the State Health Department for laboratory for analysis.”
The health department said as of 10 a.m. Monday morning, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the county.
The department also stressed that respirator mask use is flawed unless the device has been properly fit-tested.
“The Public Health Officer will provide a statement to the public if the test results indicate the presence of COVID-19,” the department said. “Until that time the public is urged to not worry needlessly. The probability of local residents contracting this illness remains low.”
The full news release from the department can be read below:
Sunday:
William Newton Hospital in Winfield canceled a grand opening ceremony, for its new surgery center, due to concerns over the coronavirus.
That concern includes a suspected case in Cowley County. Sarah Johnson, a spokesperson for the hospital, said that person met certain criteria in regard to the virus and has undergone testing.
Test results will not be back for a day or two, she said.
Other cases have been confirmed in Kansas and Oklahoma over the past two days. Hospital staff also has received reports of a confirmed case in Johnson County and a patient in Wichita meeting the criteria.
Due to these circumstances, Johnson said, WNH has decided to call off the grand opening to protect patients, providers, and the public.
The hospital offered thanks to all of the employees and volunteers who worked to coordinate the event, along with U.S. Senator Jerry Moran who was slated to speak. WNH will release a video tour of the new surgery center via social media and will commemorate these moments at a later date.
