Health Department Announces First COVID-19 Related Pediatric Death of Hamilton County Resident, Releases New COVID-19 Data, Updates High Risk Groups


HAMILTON COUNTY, TN – The Hamilton County Health Department announces the first pediatric COVID-19-related death of a county resident. The individual was under 5 years of age, had underlying health conditions, and died in a local hospital. A laboratory test showed the individual was positive for COVID-19. Because this death was reported late today, it is not included in the data below but will be included in tomorrow’s data.

“It is our deepest regret to share with you today our first COVID-19-related pediatric death,” says Health Department Administrator Becky Barnes, “As we mourn with the family, we also take this opportunity to urgently plead with each member of our community to practice social distancing by staying at home and take precautions to protect yourselves.”

The Health Department presents new data about hospitalized COVID-19 cases in Hamilton County. The intent of this hospitalization data is to show the burden placed on our local hospitals related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hospitalizations are divided into those who are COVID-19 positive and those who are persons under investigation (PUIs). A PUI is any person who is currently under investigation for having the virus that causes COVID-19. PUI patients require attending staff to use the same protocols and personal protective equipment (PPE) as COVID-19 patients.

Because sick individuals from around the region may be transferred to Hamilton County hospitals for care, the data include both Hamilton County and non-Hamilton County residents, unlike the COVID-19 case and death data which only includes Hamilton County residents. The hospitalization data are a point in time and not cumulative.

Additional new data is presented in the graph below. The orange lines represent the cumulative number of cases over time for Hamilton County. The blue lines represent daily reports of new cases. These represent only Hamilton County residents.

The Health Department has been notified of two pediatric cases (under 18 years of age) of COVID-19. One is isolated at home but their symptoms are continuing, the other has been isolated at home and has recovered. The latter case’s sibling is also now ill and isolated at home with test results pending. Neither individual was in attendance at any daycare or school since their illness onset.

The CDC has updated their COVID-19 high-risk groups by adding pregnant women and homeless individuals. The complete list of high-risk groups can be found on the CDC website. The Health Department’s Homeless Healthcare Center continues to provide essential services to the homeless during this time, while their Breastfeeding Support Program provides telephone support to breastfeeding mothers.

The current case data for Hamilton County is as follows:

 

Positive Test Results

51

Negative Test Results

737

Total Test Results

788

Quarantined

231

Recovered

29

Deaths

3

 

 

Age Demographics

Less than 18 years

2

18-49 years

18

50-64 years

13

65+ years

18

Not yet determined at the time of press†

0

 

† Not all of the details of a case may be available at the time of publication.

 

Sex Demographics

Male

32

Female

19

Not yet determined at the time of press

0

 

 

Race Demographics

White

42

Black

8

Asian

1

Not yet determined at the time of press

0

 

 

For more information or questions about COVID-19, please call the hotline at (423) 209-8383, or visit the Health Department’s website at Health.HamiltonTN.org.

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