Health & Fitness
GA Coronavirus: DeKalb Inmate And Employee Test Positive
Sheriff Melody M. Maddox said Tuesday that a DeKalb inmate and employee have both tested positive for the coronavirus.
DEKALB COUNTY, GA — A DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office employee and an inmate have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the sheriff’s office. Officials said Tuesday that the two did not have contact.
The 35-year-old DeKalb inmate was first tested during an in-custody medical assessment before being taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for treatment, reports WAGA-TV. As of Tuesday, he remained in the secured Grady Hospital Detention Center.
The 57-year-old employee has been on sick leave since March 13 following the positive test results.
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Sheriff Melody M. Maddox tells the news station that the agency is performing a “reverse contact investigation” to determine who might have been in contact with either individual. The agency also wants to advise those people to self-quarantine and possibly seek medical attention.
Maddox said new procedures have been put into place for all buildings secured by deputies. Those planning to enter the jail or the courthouse must undergo a temperature check at the entrance. Anyone running a fever will be turned away.
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Maddox released this statement:
“We were informed of the inmate’s screening results by Grady physicians who were treating the inmate for other medical concerns Upon notification, we immediately instituted our protocols for identifying and isolating individuals who might have had contact with the inmate since he has been incarcerated here.
“Those precautions include conducting additional medical assessment of other inmates and officers for any symptoms to ensure that anyone who did have contact with the infected inmate is isolated so they can receive the proper medical attention.”
Globally, more than 392,000 people have been infected and more than 17,000 people have died from the COVID-19 virus, Johns Hopkins reported as of Tuesday. Of that total, more than 81,400 confirmed cases are in China, while the entire United States has 46,000 confirmed cases as of Tuesday. There have been 593 deaths in the U.S., including 32 in Georgia, that have been tied to the virus outbreak.
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