The last time Cathy Konciak saw her husband, Edward, was March 12 at his room at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood. Later that day, he was moved to the Family of Caring at Montclair nursing home to continue his recovery from a sports-related brain injury, but without family by his side.

“The day after he arrived there, I brought a bag with more clothing for him and an iPad. I had to leave the bag by a side door and (staff) told me they would take it and decontaminate it,” Cathy Konciak told NJ Advance Media Monday, noting the the nursing home’s visitor restriction policy aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.

Now, Cathy Konciak says her 65-year-old spouse is hospitalized at Hackensack Meridian Health Mountainside with COVID-19. He was sent out of the nursing home Monday after he developed a fever, respiratory issues and a urinary tract infection, she said.

Four people linked to the home have died after testing positive for the virus: a visitor, two 86-year-old patients and one administrator. The virus spread through the 68-bed long-term care facility on March 7 after the infected visitor, who was seeing his wife at the nursing home, was escorted out of the building with a cough, John Mechaly, a spokesman for Family of Caring, has said.

Ed Konciak tested positive for the coronavirus after being admitted to Family of Caring at Montclair.Cathy Konciak

Additional details about the severity of her husband’s condition have been sparse, Cathy Konciak said, leaving her worried. She has only communicated with Edward Konciak by phone, but he had trouble speaking and was difficult to understand, she said.

“The frustration of not getting any information, not being able to get through, that’s the hardest part," said Cathy Konciak, of North Arlington.

Cathy Konciak’s husband is one of 10 additional nursing home residents who have shown symptoms of coronavirus and are being tested, while three are hospitalized, according to a letter obtained by NJ Advance Media that was sent to employees on Saturday from an infectious disease consultant group contracted by Family of Caring to review infection control protocols.

Melachy referred to the consultant group for information on the number of residents tested so far.

"When we have all the tests back, we will isolate the infected patients on one floor,” the letter reads.

“I want to emphasize that the death rate from this virus is less than 1% and most patients who die are elderly with multiple medical problems and more than 80% of patients have just mild cold or flu symptoms and don’t need hospitalization,” the letter continues.

The Centers for Disease Control echoes those statistics, and says the rate of death is higher in those over age 85.

Family of Caring nursing facility, in Montclair, N.J. March, 19, 2020 Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for

The nursing home received test kits from a private lab last week and is swabbing anyone who has symptoms of the coronavirus, Melachy said.

But workers there have voiced anxieties and concerns about their health as they interact with patients on a daily basis.

One employee, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, described a panic that has fallen on the facility, with multiple staff members calling out of work. Everyone at the home, not just those with a fever and cough, should be tested so asymptomatic carriers don’t spread the virus further, the employee added.

“Perform testing on all residents and staff, please, so this doesn’t become a hot spot," the worker said. “We don’t feel safe.”

A shortage of test kits— in the home and across the U.S.— has meant the facility can only swab symptomatic individuals, Melachy said.

Another employee who wished to remain anonymous described feeling guilty for considering calling out of a shift.

“I really want to go because I feel so bad for my residents. It’s making me teary eyed. They’re like family to me... But I don’t want to expose myself to this or my own family,” the employee said. “It’s a difficult decision. I feel helpless.”

Last Thursday, the nursing home administrator, 52-year-old John Cofrancesco, of Bergenfield, died after testing positive for COVID-19. He joined Family of Caring two years ago.

Melachy said some staff members have visited a drive-thru testing site in Bergen County to get swabbed themselves while the nursing home is still waiting for the results of residents’ tests.

Lona Erwin, middle, surrounded by her grandchildren and daughter. Erwin tested positive for COVID-19 a week after dying at Family of Caring at Montclair. "I didn’t get a chance to say a proper goodbye," her daughter said. Alix Handy

“The labs are just so overdrawn,” Melachy said. “They are not getting back to us in a timely fashion."

State officials have said the spread of coronavirus in nursing homes is a concern. Of the 13 new coronavirus deaths announced Tuesday, nine were associated with long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes, state health commissioner Judith Persichilli said at a press conference.

Alix Handy, whose 86-year-old mother died at the facility, said she finally received her mom’s positive coronavirus result Tuesday — six days after her mother’s death.

“It’s not a surprise, but it actually feels good to have that closure that yes, she was positive (for coronavirus),” she said.

Her mother, Lona Erwin, spent most of her life in Framingham, Massachusetts and was a mother of five children. In her last years at the nursing home, Handy said her mom loved visits from her grandchildren.

But the family was not able to visit Erwin in her final days; the hardest part of her death, Handy said. The nursing home has since begun arranging daily FaceTimes between patients and their family members, Melachy said.

“I didn’t get a chance to say a proper goodbye. By the time I knew it was COVID-19, it was less than three hours before her death," Handy said. “She was too far gone for me to even have a conversation with and I couldn’t see her. You’re talking to air.”

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Avalon Zoppo may be reached at azoppo2@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AvalonZoppo. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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