Health

EL PASO, Texas -- A total of eleven staff members and patients at the El Paso Psychiatric Center have tested positive for novel coronavirus, sources familiar with the situation told Bob Moore of El Paso Matters on Friday.

El Paso City/County Health Authority Dr. Hector Ocaranza had said at a news conference Thursday evening that 11 cases were tied to a health-care facility that he declined to identify.

But multiple health-care and legal sources, who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly, identified the facility as the El Paso Psychiatric Center at 4615 Alameda Avenue.

Both staff and patients at the center were infected, the sources said, although a precise breakdown wasn’t immediately available.

The El Paso Psychiatric Center, which is operated by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, provides in-patient services for up to 74 adults, according to the Legislative Budget Board.

Health and Human Services Commission spokeswoman Christine Mann said the agency was legally prohibited from releasing personal health information of staff and patients. But she did talk generally about how the agency is responding to virus infections in its facilities.

“In any facility in which a patient tests positive for Covid-19, all staff wear face masks. Additionally, we’re continuing to educate and train staff on infection control procedures and the proper use of (personal protective equipment). Staff working with Covid-19 positive patients are dedicated to treating only those patients, using the appropriate personal protective equipment and are following all CDC guidelines to protect their safety and prevent spread,” Mann said on Friday.

The Psychiatric Center is in the 79905 ZIP code, which has one of the highest rates of virus infection in El Paso County, according to an El Paso Matters analysis of El Paso Department of Public Health data.