'On top of it early:' No COVID-19 deaths at long-term care facility that made costly decision

MILWAUKEE -- One-third of all deaths related to the coronavirus in Wisconsin are in long-term care facilities. Edenbrook Lakeside on Milwaukee's east side has not recorded a death related to the coronavirus, they say, because of one costly decision.

Friday night means it's back to work for longtime health care worker Dewanna Taylor. At Edenbrook Lakeside, she is caring for some of the most vulnerable -- having already recovered from COVID-19 herself.

"I tried to distance myself as much as I can from the residents, but still give them the care they deserve," said Taylor, a licensed practical nurse at Edenbrook.

In mid-March, the long-term care facility discovered two "patient zeroes" inside -- a staff member and a resident who tested positive for the virus.

"At that point, we decided that it would be important to test all of our staff and all of our residents so that we could have a better understanding of what we were dealing with," said Steven St. Louis, the administrator at Edenbrook Lakeside.

Those tests revealed 11 out of 114 staff members were positive. Nine out of 86 residents were as well. Testing staff alone cost $10,000, but St. Louis believes it helped stop the spread early on.

"All of which were asymptomatic, so had we not done the testing, we wouldn't have even known," said St. Louis. "People who got on top of it early and took it serious very early, are the ones that are seeing success."

Their nearly twenty positive cases is now down to two positive residents. Those individuals are stayed in an isolated unit. The facility is also doing other precautions to stop the virus' spread including testing any new employee and restricting essential vendors to the lobby.

Since the testing, Edenbrook Lakeside has sent two letters; the first was on March 25 to residents and their families, the second on April 29.

"I think it's important for people to know, because the unknown is what creates all the fear," said St. Louis.

You won't find fear in Taylor, who was quick to return to the job she feels passionate about.

"They took care of us, and now it's our turn to take care of them," Taylor said. "It can be emotionally, physically challenging. That's why us as healthcare workers have to take care of ourselves so we can be there for the resident as well."

The facility is offering more pay and other incentives to staff to encourage them to work at their facility. Often times in long term care, workers travel between facilities. St. Louis said they will continue doing what they can, while acknowledging the battle with COVID-19 is not over.