Bartholomew County COVID-19 case confirmed

The Bartholomew County Health Department and Columbus Regional Hospital are confirming a case of COVID-19 in Bartholomew County.

Dr. Brian Niedbalski, Bartholomew County’s health officer explains

The patient is in stable condition in an isolation room. Health officials say that it appears to be a community-transmitted case as the patient did not have a travel history or clinical contact link. Health officials are still gathering information to determine whether the patient traveled outside of the county recently, or whether the patient recently attended any large gatherings.

Dr. Slade Crowder with CRH explains what that means:

The hospital says that all staff members interacting with the patient are using personal protective equipment.

Crowder says that the county has done three to five tests through the Indiana State Department of Health and another 30 or so through a private vendor, which requires a three day turnaround. Most of those results are still pending.

Columbus Regional Hospital press conference audio: