A Minnesota National Guard unit botched COVID-19 testing for 300 residents and staff members at a St. Paul nursing home Monday, leaving many with pain, discomfort and bloody noses.
In what one health official acknowledged was "a disaster," the test samples from Episcopal Church Home were later ruined because they were not stored in coolers while being transported to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.
State officials quickly apologized to Episcopal Homes leaders and said they've already taken steps to ensure such mistakes aren't repeated. Nevertheless, an elder care advocate said the incident raises serious questions about whether Minnesota can accurately and effectively carry out widespread testing.
The National Guard unit was deployed to Episcopal Church Home as part of the state's effort to ramp up testing at nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
"This just further erodes any trust that we have had in the Department of Health," said Kris Sundberg, executive director of Elder Voice Family Advocates. "I think we have a long way to go to really have the clearly thought-out protocols we need in order to do [widespread] testing."
A statement Wednesday from the Minnesota State Lab Partnership acknowledged "that there was an isolated incident related to the packaging and shipment of specimens to one of the testing sites. Ensuring the temperature integrity of specimens is critical to testing. We are accelerating and strengthening our training program to ensure all specimen collections, packaging, and shipping are performed to the highest standards."
National Guard personnel were sent to Episcopal Church Home on Monday after the facility earlier reported several staff members and residents had tested positive for the coronavirus. It was their first deployment, Dr. John Hick, manager of the State Healthcare Coordination Center, said in an e-mail to Episcopal Homes officials.
A National Guard spokesman would not confirm that Wednesday, referring questions to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).