Flushing View

Legionella discovered at Flushing area nursing center




FLUSHING — Genesee County health officials have confirmed that Legionella bacteria has been found at the Heartland Healthcare Center-Fostrian in Flushing.

The report, which was conducted by the Genesee County Health Department, has also revealed that two patients at the skilled nursing facility tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease in August. One of those residents has died, but health officials have not yet determined if the cause of death was from Legionnaires or from another illness.

In a statement, HCR Manor Spokesperson Julie Beckert said that the facility is taking all precautions to ensure the well-being of patients and staff.

“The center is working closely with local health authorities to ensure the bacteria is contained,” she said. “Steps have been taken to curb the spread of the bacteria per the department of health specifications. We have treated and added a chlorination process. We are awaiting the results of the next tests.”

Beckert’s statement also said that the center’s leadership has met with staff and educated them about the bacteria.

“We are in the process of providing educational information to our patients and families,” she said.

Currently, over 100 patients at the Heartland skilled nursing facility are using only bottled water.

The Fostrian Court Assisted Living center, which also located on the Heartland Healthcare campus on Sunnyside Drive, is not part of the Legionella investigation.

In a joint statement, the Genesee County Drain Commissioner’s Office and the City of Flushing have said that there is no Legionella bacteria in the city’s water supply, which is purchased from the Karengondi Water Authority.

“Water tests administered by GCDCWWS along the pipeline route, water plant and distribution system near the Heartland facility confirmed Chlorine residual in the water supply,” the statement reads. “Detectable amounts of Chlorine residual and Legionella bacteria are not compatible, therefore Legionella bacteria could not originate in the County water supply or City of Flushing system.”

As a precautionary measure, the City of Flushing DPW staff will be doing additional chlorine residual testing at the entrance points of the city’s water distribution system and will continue to monitor the situation closely.

According to the Genesee County Health Department, 21 cases of Legionnaires have been discovered in the county in 2019.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) defines Legionnaires as a serious form of pneumonia or a lung infection which can be contracted when people breathe in droplets of water in the air that contain Legionella or by aspiration of contaminated water or ice.

However, Legionnaires does not spread from person to person and most healthy people do not contract the disease after being exposed to Legionella, as stated by the Genesee County Health Department. Individuals at the highest risk of contracting Legionella include those ages 50 and above, people with chronic lung disease or a weak immune system and current or former smokers.

Symptoms of Legionnaires typically appear two to 10 days after exposure to the bacteria and can include coughing, shortness of breath, fever, muscle aches, headaches, and sometimes diarrhea and confusion. In most cases, the disease can be treated successfully with antibiotics.

Further information regarding Legionnaires is available from the CDC website at www.cdc. gov/legionella and on the Genesee County Health Department website at www.gchd.us.

If residents who receive municipal water in the City of Flushing have any questions, they can contact the City of Flushing at 810-659-3130 or the Genesee County Drain Commission at 810-732- 7870.