HAMLET — A former hospital in Richmond County could be brought back to life, at least temporarily, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
N.C. Emergency Management Direct Mike Sprayberry announced during a press conference Tuesday after noon that the Council of State approved a lease for Sandhills Regional Medical Center to be set up “to provide additional beds to support hospital overflow.”
“In the event hospitals across the state exceed their bed capacity, Sandhills Regional will be used to house their non-acute and non-COVID-19 patients,” Emily Sloan, spokesperson for FirstHealth of the Carolinas, said in an email.
“According to the proposed agreement, the state would provide all staff, supplies and equipment,” Sloan added. “The center will not be used as a homeless shelter or care center for infectious disease patients.”
FirstHealth acquired Sandhills in late 2016 and closed the hospital the following year.
Last month, the hospital was utilized to create a COVID-19 mobile testing facility.
Sloan said that will continue for now, but could change if the hospital is used by the state.
Those wanting to get tested must be referred.
The testing facility is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and each patient is screened for symptoms (fever, cough, shortness of breath) to determine if the COVID-19 test should be collected, according to Richmond County Health and Human Services Director Dr. Tommy Jarrell.
Gov. Roy Cooper said he plans to sign another executive order later this week that will make more hospital bed space available, fast-track childcare for health workers and limit the number of customers in retail establishments statewide.
COVID-19 NUMBERS
Richmond County still only has one lab-confirmed case of the coronavirus, which county health officials announced Monday. The individual is believed to have contracted the virus during out-of-county work-related travel.
As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, 277 individuals in Richmond County have been tested. Aside from the one positive result, the other 236 tests that have come back have all been negative, Jarrell said in a press release.
According to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, there have been 3,221 positive cases out of 41,082 individuals tested.
State health officials say there are 354 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized and the virus has contributed to 46 deaths, including that of a Montgomery County sheriff’s deputy who graduated from Richmond Senior High School in 1994.
On Monday, the Pilot of Southern Pines reported that the Moore County Health Department closed admissions at Pinehurst Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center after a positive case of the coronavirus was linked to the facility and a “highly suspicious case” awaits test results.
State records show only 10 cases in that county. However, the Moore County Health Department announced Monday that it has had 20 confirmed cases, including two deaths.
