Coronavirus In New Hampshire: 1,045 New Positive Cases; 2 Die

CONCORD, NH — Two more elderly Hillsborough County residents have died due to or connected to COVID-19 in New Hampshire, according to the State Joint Information Center.

The man and woman were connected to long-term care settings and were both 80 years of age or older. They bring the number of fatalities to 566 or about 2 percent of all cases in New Hampshire.

According to health officials, 81.3 percent of all deaths in the state were connected to long-term care facilities while nine health workers have also died. Also, 89 percent of all deaths in the state were 70 years of age or older.

Another 1,045 new positive test results including 116 children were announced Monday. After more than 3,900 polymerase chain reaction specimens were collected Sunday, 300 positive cases were found. The rest of the cases were from previous days — including 78 from Wednesday, bringing that daily count to 1,157, 244 from Thursday raising that count to 798, and 423 from Saturday.

The PCR positivity rate for the day was 6.8 percent.

Information about more tests is outstanding and will be processed and updated in future reports.

State officials are still trying to determine the place of residency of 61 of the new patients but 321 live in Hillsborough County outside of Nashua, 243 reside in Rockingham County, 122 live in Merrimack County, and 79 live in Nashua.

The latest current case map published Dec. 7. Source: New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services

Most of the cases, the state said, contracted the virus from a confirmed case or an outbreak setting. Of the nearly 26,000 Granite Staters who have contracted the virus since March, about 17 percent each caught the virus due to being in contact with an infected person or being connected to a cluster in an institutional setting. Another 13 percent caught it via community transmission and seven percent became sick after traveling. About 45 percent of patients have an unclear or unknown risk factor.

Nearly 444,000 Granite State residents have been tested in New Hampshire via 898,054 total tests.

In K-12 schools in New Hampshire, there are 70 active cases with 785 recoveries. Two new cases were reported Monday: Madison Elementary School and Henry W. Moore School in Candia reported their first cases.

Robots Used At CHaD To Prevent Virus Spread

Robots are being used at the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock to help patients struggling with isolation while also trying to stop the spread, too.

The robots also allow the hospital to care and check in with patients while also preserving personal protective equipment.

"As we were preparing for a possible surge in COVID-19 patients in palliative care, we kept coming back to how we could protect the ability of patients, families, and care teams to communicate with one another," Dr. Meredith MacMartin said. "Keeping lines of communication open is critical to the emotional support for sick patients, but also to help the people caring for them to know and understand the patient, what's important to them, and what their life is like outside the hospital — information that is especially important during discharge planning or when medical decisions must be made. I wanted to find a way to use technology to keep these lines of communication open."

MacMartin contacted an engineer friend who was involved in robotics competitions. This led to other introductions, including James Cole-Henry, a mechanical engineer at Fujifilm Dimatix in Lebanon, who coaches dozens of students involved in a robotics team known as the "Grasshoppers." The students are from Hartford VT High School, Hanover High School, Lebanon High School, Mascoma Regional High School and home schools, and they helped to design and create the robot.

ALSO READ:

• Member Of New Hampshire Governor's Staff Contracts Coronavirus
• Managing Coronavirus, Concord Schools Becoming 'Very Challenging'
• 5 More Deaths; 656 New Positive Coronavirus Test Results In NH
• Another 7 Elderly New Hampshire Residents Die From Coronavirus
• 8 More COVID-19 Deaths In New Hampshire: Update

Stop The Spread Of COVID-19

The COVID-19 virus is spread through respiratory droplets, usually through coughing and sneezing, and exposure to others who are sick or might be showing symptoms.

Health officials emphasize residents should follow these recommendations:

• Avoid any domestic and international travel, especially on public transportation such as buses, trains, and airplanes.
• Practice social distancing. Stay at least 6 feet from other people, including distancing while in waiting areas or lines.
• When you can't practice 6 feet of social distancing, wear a face covering.
• Anyone who is told to self-quarantine and stay at home due to exposure to a person with confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19 needs to stay home and not go out into public places.
• If you are 60 years or older or have chronic and underlying health conditions, you need to stay home and not go out.
• Avoid gatherings of 10 people or more.
• Employers should work from home as much as possible.
• There is increasing evidence that the virus can survive for hours or possibly days on surfaces. People should clean frequently touched surfaces, including door handles, grocery carts and grocery basket handles, etc.

Take the same precautions as you would if you were sick:

• Stay home and avoid public places.
• Wear a face covering.
• Cover mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
• Wash hands frequently.
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

More information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services about coronavirus can be found here on the department's website.

• Guidance to schools can be found can be found here.
• Instructions for returning travelers to self-observe for symptoms of COVID-19 are available are available here.
• For more information on COVID-19 in NH, visit its site here.
• For the latest information from the CDC, visit its site here.
• To access the state's COVID-19 data dashboard, click on this link here.
• To access the state's COVID-19 Interactive Map Dashboard, click on this link here.

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