68 Staff At Edison's JFK Medical Center Had COVID In Past Month

EDISON, NJ — State officials have reported 68 COVID-19 cases among staff of Hackensack Meridian Health JFK University Medical Center in Edison in the past 30 days. The figure represents around 2 percent of hospital staff, but New Jersey continues to report increases in hospital workers catching the virus.

The New Jersey Department of Health shares the number of staff cases at hospitals for the past 30 days. The JFK University Medical Center has 3,500 staff members.

As COVID-19 cases spike through New Jersey, infections among hospital staff continue to increase. The state health department has reported at least 100 new cases per day among hospital employees since last week. In the past 30 days, 20.85 percent of cases among New Jersey hospital staff have come from workplace activity, while officials attributed the rest to community spread.

JFK University Medical Center said the safety of staff and patients was a "priority" at Hackensack Meridian Health.

"The safety of our patients and team members is the priority of Hackensack Meridian Health. This is why the network was one of the first health networks in New Jersey to mandate vaccines for all 36,000 team members. The network continues to follow all CDC protocols to keep our hospitals and care locations safe," a spokesperson told Patch via email.

"This has had no impact on patient care. We are fully staffed and continue to provide high-quality, safe and compassionate care."

Read More: COVID-19 Booster Shots: Where To Find Them In Edison-Metuchen

The New Jersey Hospital Association also recently urged people not to delay medical care, including trips to the hospital.

The organization discovered a significant increase in deaths at home during 2020 — 95,715 overall, with COVID-19 listed as the primary cause for 16,548 people. Deaths at home never exceeded 76,000 in a single year from 2017-19, according to the New Jersey Hospital Association.

"It's impossible to know whether these excess deaths could have been prevented with timely access to hospital care," said Sean Hopkins, senior vice president of the NJHA's Center for Health Analytics, Research and Transformation. "But the trends are troubling, and they reinforce a critical message during a public health emergency: Please don't delay seeking the care you need."

The state health department reported 1,902 active hospitalizations among COVID-19 patients as of Sunday — New Jersey's highest total since April 23.

(With reporting from Josh Bakan, Patch Staff)

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