JUST IN: Worker at CSB-Merrifield Facility Tests Positive for COVID-19

An employee at the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board (CSB) has tested positive for COVID-19.

The CSB-Merrifield facility employee works in the youth court services and lives outside of Fairfax County, Lisa Flowers, CSB’s spokesperson, told Tysons Reporter.

More from Flowers:

A letter was sent to CSB staff to alert them to the situation on March 21st. A CSB employee in youth court services tested positive for COVID-19 and an email was sent to CSB staff on March 23rd…

A hospital-grade mister that kills bacteria and viruses was used throughout the CSB areas of the Merrifield Center as part of the industrial cleaning process. As a part of our standard procedure any person who may have encountered the affected person was contacted and advised to quarantine for fourteen days.

Wipe-downs of high-touch areas, such as hallways and elevators, doors and doorknobs, are taking place regularly with EPA-approved disinfectants. Staff are reminded to wash their hands often throughout the day. Commonly accessed areas at CSB locations are also cleaned often throughout the day.

Communication from CSB leadership to staff, which Flowers sent to Tysons Reporter, said that the employee “did not work while they were symptomatic.”

Daryl Washington, the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board’s executive director, and Dr. Gloria Addo-Ayensu, the director of the county’s health department, wrote a joint letter to CSB staff on March 21.

On March 20, the health department identified that the CSB-Merrifield employee tested positive for the virus, the letter said, adding that the health department, CSB staff and county officials investigated the case.

More from the letter:

The staff person did not have contact with the CSB adult or youth walk-in assessment units or emergency services. In our investigation, we have identified a small number of staff and clients who were at risk of exposure to COVID-19 while the infected person was ill. The Health Department has contacted those individuals.

If you have not received a call from the Health Department, it means you have not been identified as being at risk of exposure and you do not need to take any actions at this time. As an additional precaution, please observe yourself until April 2, the time during which COVID-19 illness might occur if a person is infected as a result of this exposure.

Symptoms to look for include fever, cough or shortness of breath. If symptoms develop, please contact your health care provider and describe the situation.

For CSB-Merrifield staff who have been called by the Health Department, please stay at home and away from others while the investigation is ongoing and during the time when illness could occur. Until April 2, staff in this group should stay at home or in the yard, avoid contact with others, and not go out in public. At home, contact with other family members also should be limited. These measures will reduce the chance that infection might spread in the community. During the call, additional recommendations may be provided.

“The Fairfax County Health Department has confirmed there are no public health recommendations or actions needed in the workplace because the staff person remained at home when they became ill,” Washington said in an email to staff.

On March 27, Fairfax County buildings closed to the public, but the emergency services on the Merrifield Center’s lower level stayed open, according to the county’s website.

“During this time, CSB has transitioned mainly to telehealth services via Zoom for Healthcare, by phone or video,” according to Fairfax County. “If possible, before coming to the Merrifield Center, please call ahead to Emergency Services to see if you are able to be seen via telehealth services — phone or video.”

Photo by CDC on Unsplash