Griffin Health Physician Tests Positive For COVID-19

by Eugene Driscoll | Mar 13, 2020 9:25 pm

DERBY — An update to this story was posted here.

Griffin Health released a statement Friday night saying a “community-based” physician tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.

According to a statement from Griffin Health, “no action” is needed regarding the physician’s patients or office workers because the physician had not seen patients in his office for 24 hours before exhibiting symptoms.

“The physician is being quarantined consistent with health officials’ recommendations,” the organization’s statement reads.

The Valley Indy asked Griffin Health and the state’s COVID-19 Joint Information Center Friday night for more information. Griffin Health said health officials advised they didn’t need to do anymore than have the physician quarantined.

Griffin Health would not say where the physician’s office is located — but said the office is NOT in Griffin Hospital.

Griffin Hospital is in Derby, but physicians work in offices throughout the Valley.

“The only thing I can confirm is that this physician operates out of an office that is not at the hospital,” spokesman Christian Meagher said in an email. “However, out of respect for patient privacy (the physician is a patient due to the COVID-19 test) we cannot say where.”

There was no information available Friday night on specifically how the physician was infected with COVID-19, a respiratory illness.

In its statement, Griffin Health noted the facility in Derby is “well-prepared to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The hospital is working to make testing available locally. The country and state have struggled to get test kits into circulation to track COVID-19, which was officially declared a pandemic this week. President Donald Trump declared a national emergency Friday, promising more money, resources, test kits, and testing capability would be coming.

“Effort is underway to expand capacity to care for COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization and to make COVID-19 testing available to the community. Griffin Health is also working with local officials and community-based organizations to ensure the continued delivery of social services and to address new needs resulting from the disruption caused by the COVID-19 response,” the statement concluded.

At a press conference in Hartford Friday evening (several hours before Griffin Health released its statement), state officials said the number of Connecticut residents with COVID-19 increased to 11. There were six confirmed positives Thursday. The new cases reported Friday are residents of Bethlehem, Darien, Greenwich, and Westport.