MOH threatens to close Nursing Homes: The Mustard Seed Communities have been placed under quarantine after 36 people, over at the Jerusalem Children’s Village tested positive for COVID-19.

According to the Ministry of Health, testing was triggered after one staff member tested positive for the virus.

The Minister of Health, Dr. Chris Tufton, says three areas at the facility have been selected for specific isolation quarantine. One area is for isolation of asymptomatic positives. Another area is for the quarantining of symptomatic negatives, and the third for isolation of symptomatic positives.

CVM LIVE visited the location earlier yesterday.  From across the street, our cameras captured movements on the facility. However, we were told by the  representatives of the Mustard Seed Community that we could not record.

We observed that the Security Guards were conducting temperature checks and installed a sanitizing station.

Additionally, residents are blaming the outbreak of the virus, on the lack of enforcement of protocols at the facility. According to residents, management has been allowing visits from relatives.

In the meantime, the Ministry of Health is warning operators of the facility to enforce the containment protocols to avoid the risk of closure.

However, the nature of the work done by the facility makes it almost impossible to close them down. 

The Ministry of Health had revealed that of the 214 Nursing Homes across the island, only 95 passed the COVID-compliant assessment.

However, CVM LIVE could not ascertain whether the Jerusalem Facility, operated by the Mustard Seed Community was in that batch.

Jamaila Maitland reports: