Briarwood Nursing and Rehabilitation in Little Rock is shown in this file photo. (Democrat-Gazette file photo)

Penny Boyer has watched her mother's health deteriorate from a distance this week as the 83-year-old battles covid-19 isolated in a Little Rock nursing home.

Unable to visit her, Boyer has prayed for her mother to make it.

"We just have to wait and see," Boyer told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Thursday. "The hardest part for me is not being able to be down there with her, and let her know I'm with her and how much I love her and that she's not alone."

Her mother, Alice Jett, has lived at Briarwood Nursing and Rehabilitation for about five years, Boyer said.

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Jett is one of 37 residents at the Briarwood nursing home who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus after the respiratory disease swept through the facility this month. Eleven staff members also have tested positive, according to the latest count from the Arkansas Department of Health.

Jett's bout with the disease is a window into the experience of suffering from an infectious disease that is sweeping the world.

Patients such as Jett must be isolated, even from their families, to prevent the spread of covid-19. Messages like "I love you" from her children are delivered by nurses and doctors donning masks, gloves and gowns to protect themselves.

For a while, Jett felt fine after her family learned she had tested positive for the coronavirus about a week ago, Boyer said, but in recent days her mother's health has spiraled downward.

Jett was asymptomatic until Monday, when she fell ill, her daughter said. She developed a slight fever and took liquid Tylenol, which helped.

The next day, Jett wouldn't eat or drink. She went to sleep and doctors were unable to wake her, Boyer said. Her mother began receiving intravenous fluids for nutrition and hydration. She had a high fever and seemingly lost consciousness.

A doctor called her brother Wednesday afternoon to say that "it doesn't look good, but she's not giving up," Boyer recalled.

She received word Thursday evening from her brother that her mother had opened her eyes a couple of times after being unconscious for more than 24 hours. One time Jett didn't react, but another time she sat up long enough to drink a couple of sips of water and some liquid Tylenol, Boyer said.

Her condition was pretty much the same as the day before, but Boyer took it as a good sign. It gave her hope that her mother might recover from the virus.

Later Thursday night, the facility called Boyer's brother and told him that Jett's fever had gone up. She was having difficulty breathing and was moaning in pain, and medical personnel placed her on a ventilator and gave her more Tylenol, Boyer said.

Briarwood called again Friday evening to say that Jett's fever was down, but her mother still wouldn't wake up, Boyer said.

In a text message that evening, Boyer wrote that she was "waiting again & praying constantly."

"No one should have to die without their family," she added.

A doctor told Boyer's family previously that her mother's Parkinson's disease has caused complications as she fights the virus. Medical experts say the elderly and those with underlying health conditions are at the greatest risk for severe complications from the virus.

The last time Boyer saw her mother was about a month ago, before nursing facilities across the state barred visitors except essential personnel as a result of a March 13 directive from the Department of Health. Boyer's son and granddaughters last visited Jett three weeks ago, on March 7.

Jett suffers from Alzheimer's disease as well as Parkinson's with dementia, Boyer said.

"It may sound bad to some people, but if she is going to die, I don't want her to wake up," Boyer said. "Because I don't want her to wake up and have fear, you know? Because Mama gets scared sometimes with the dementia and Alzheimer's."

Even under normal circumstances, her mother occasionally gets scared because she doesn't understand what is happening. If her mother wakes up but cannot recover from the coronavirus, Boyer said, "I don't want her to be afraid of what's going on and possibly know that she's not going to make it."

Boyer, 60, and her two brothers are immunocompromised, and as a result are more vulnerable to the coronavirus. During the outbreak, Boyer has remained isolated in her home near the Ferndale community. Her son and other people in Ferndale have been bringing her food and other items.

She searched in vain for a hazmat suit in an attempt to find a way to visit her mother without being exposed to the virus. The facility's staff offered to allow Boyer's brother to visit while wearing a mask, gown and gloves, "but for us that's not going to protect us," Boyer said.

Jett is unable to talk over the phone because of her Alzheimer's -- "She's really not herself anymore," Boyer said -- so instead her family has been trying to relay to her through her nurses that they love her, miss her and haven't given up on her.

"Part of me feels like if I could sit there and talk to her, even though she's unconscious, I really feel that a lot of people can hear what's going on," Boyer said. "And I just feel like if we could be there and say how much we love her, and 'Fight it, you're strong,' that she might do better, but obviously we can't be there."

It's unclear how the coronavirus initially entered the Briarwood facility and spread so widely among its residents.

According to Arkansas Department of Health Secretary Dr. Nate Smith and other officials, a Briarwood resident was tested for the coronavirus while visiting a hospital for other health issues. However, the resident was not isolated after the test and returned to the nursing home before the result came back positive, Smith said.

A receptionist at Briarwood said questions about the outbreak should be directed to Rachel Bunch, executive director of the Arkansas Health Care Association.

In an emailed statement to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Friday, Bunch wrote that Briarwood staff members have been working around the clock to protect residents and prevent the spread of the virus. Briarwood staff and the AHCA are in constant communication with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Arkansas Department of Health, she said.

"AHCA is not aware of any criticisms from these officials related to Briarwood's infection control policies," Bunch wrote. "Briarwood understands that relatives of the affected residents are concerned about the health of their loved ones. Briarwood shares this concern, and is working diligently to care for those affected and continue to protect all residents and staff from transmission."

Another relative of a Briarwood resident criticized the facility's response and preparation.

Lois Hargrove's 99-year-old aunt was staying in the facility temporarily for rehabilitation while recovering from a partial hip replacement, which took place about three weeks ago, before the coronavirus outbreak happened.

"I'm terrified," Hargrove said Tuesday. "I'm literally terrified."

Her aunt hasn't tested positive for the coronavirus and was hoping to feel strong enough to be discharged toward the end of the week, Hargrove said.

"She's just desperate to get out of that place," Hargrove said.

Hargrove's aunt confirmed the account of her transfer to rehab following her hip surgery, but asked that her name not be used in this article.

Aside from the Briarwood outbreak, five other coronavirus cases have been tied to residents of three other Arkansas nursing homes.

In light of the number of coronavirus cases associated with Briarwood compared with other Arkansas nursing homes, Hargrove said, "that tells me that their infectious disease protocol is sadly, sadly lacking."

Boyer emphasized that her family doesn't blame the staff of the assisted living facility. The employees know her mother well and care about her, she said.

"I haven't given up hope," Boyer said. "I'm not going to give up hope until they say she's gone."

Alice Jett

A Section on 03/28/2020