200 patients and workers at Wisconsin children’s hospital being tested for coronavirus after doctor tests positive: report

Two hundred hospital workers and patients at a children’s hospital in Wauwatosa, Wis., are being tested for the novel coronavirus after a doctor there recently tested positive, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Wednesday. 

According to the paper, the doctor from the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, had contracted the virus after taking a recent trip out of state. As a result, the hospital has reportedly begun testing on 200 people, a bulk of which are hospital staff.

Andy Brodzeller, spokesperson for the hospital, told The Hill that the doctor had tested positive for the virus on Monday and has since been “quarantined at home with mild symptoms and is recovering.” He said doctor had been on the Milwaukee campus from March 9-15.

“In total, 48 patient families, plus staff, have been identified and contacted. They have all been advised on next steps based on [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines, ranging from monitoring for symptoms, self-quarantine or testing,” Brodzeller said.

“In the 48, 10 are patients we are caring for in the hospital. Thirty-eight were either discharged from the hospital or never admitted,” he added.

Brodzeller said the hospital has “rigorous internal systems for infection prevention, and have expanded them greatly in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.”

Mike Gutzeit, who serves as the chief medical officer at the hospital, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that it has prioritized testing patients and workers deemed to be at higher risk for developing serious illnesses from the virus amid a testing shortage in the country.

However, the hospital’s testing efforts were met with criticism with one patient’s father, who told the Milwaukee Journal he hadn’t been tested yet, even though he was reportedly being quarantined with his teenage daughter, who was tested and is receiving treatment for chemotherapy.

“What if she’s negative and I come down with it and infect her?” he said to the paper. “They are setting themselves up for a huge lawsuit because common sense isn’t being used here.”

The report comes as Trump administration continue to face pressure over its slow rollout of U.S. coronavirus testing amid the outbreak.