On Sept. 2, 2021, the Juvenile Services Division was notified that a youth in the juvenile detention facility tested positive for COVID-19. Following the notifications, in coordination with Public Health and Corrections Health, staff immediately acted by implementing pre-planned infectious disease protocols. These actions include:
- Quarantining impacted youth and staff.
- Restricting movement between units within the facility and limiting access to the impacted units to only essential detention and medical personnel.
- Testing of all youth in the specific unit where potential exposure was identified.
- Working closely with Multnomah County’s Public Health Officer and Communicable Disease response specialist to review case history, information, and protective actions. This includes contact tracing to assess personnel movement involving the individual.
- Meeting with health partners to review and analyze potential exposure and coordinate next steps.
Upon learning that one youth tested positive, the parents of impacted youth were notified and all youth on that unit were tested. Corrections Health notified us that no additional youth tested positive for COVID-19. The latest positive case brings the total number of cases at the Juvenile Services Division to eight in the past 26 days. The last positive case was on Monday, August 30. See previous post.
The Juvenile Services Division is working side-by-side with public health COVID-19 experts, the Multnomah County Health Officer and Corrections Health as they monitor these individuals. Staff continue to follow mask, distance and disinfection protocols and youth in custody are routinely offered vaccines for COVID-19.
Visitors to all Multnomah County facilities are reminded that masks are required.
For more information on COVID-19, including symptoms of which you may want to be aware, please visit the County’s COVID-19 website, which has practical advice and information on testing and other guidance, or the Oregon Health Authority COVID-19 website or the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention COVID-19 website.