Recent rounds of COVID-19 testing among employees at Heritage nursing facilities in Chautauqua County returned five positive results in the last two weeks.

Jeremy Rutter, Heritage Ministries chief clinical officer, confirmed Thursday that two staff members at Heritage Green on Route 430 in Greenhurst tested positive for the coronavirus. The results, from samples taken Sept. 24 as part of weekly testing, came back Monday.

The employees, Rutter said, were asymptomatic for COVID-19 and are currently in quarantine. They will be required to stay home for at least 14 days and receive a negative test result before returning to work.

One employee at Heritage Village in Gerry also tested positive in results that came back Monday. Rutter said that worker also was asymptomatic and will require a negative test result before returning.

At Heritage Park in Jamestown, Rutter said two employees tested Sept. 17 were found to have the virus. They were asymptomatic and have been in quarantine away from the facility.

In each instance, Rutter said staff, residents and families were made aware of the positive COVID-19 results within 24 hours. He said the organization has followed all state guidelines, including communicating with the Chautauqua County Department of Health.

“We’ve been fortunate,” Rutter said of the few positive cases during the pandemic and that no employee has suffered any symptoms. He noted that one resident, at Heritage Park, did test positive for COVID-19 in June — to date the only resident of a Heritage facility in Chautauqua County confirmed to have the virus. That resident has since recovered.

“We’ve taken the necessary precautions,” Rutter said of efforts to combat the virus from entering a facility and to limit the potential for spread if detected. “I feel like we’ve been fairly successful in keeping this out of our nursing facilities and keeping the panic down. It’s important to keep in mind when dealing with the elderly. You have to give them the news and be as open as possible.”

Heritage, like other nursing facilities mandated by New York state, continues to test employees on a weekly basis. At Heritage Green, with a staff of about 240, Rutter said 7,000 tests have been administered to date. Another 7,000 have been administered at Heritage Village with a staff between 215 and 220. In all, the chief clinical officer estimates 20,000 tests have been taken.

Heritage conducts its testing internally; swabs collected are sent to a laboratory at the end of each week, with results typically coming back after the weekend. He said the company has spent about $2 million on testing alone, a cost “we’ve just had to absorb. … It’s a hard pill we’ve had to swallow.”

12 NEW CASES REPORTED

The Chautauqua County Department of Health on Thursday reported 12 new cases of COVID-19. The new cases include two in Jamestown, three in Brocton, three in Dunkirk and four in Fredonia.

There are currently 45 active cases for those who continue to recover under orders from local health officials. In addition, the county Health Department said 345 county residents were in quarantine/isolation as well as 30 under domestic traveler quarantine, two people hospitalized, 619 recoveries, 10 deaths, 674 total confirmed cases and 44,981 negative test results.