May 5, 2020

 

Miller Poultry tests employees for COVID-19 after outbreak

 

 

Following an initial outbreak of seven positive cases on April 30, Miller Poultry tested almost all of its employees for COVID-19 for two days last weekend, reported Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly.

 

Miller worked with Cameron Memorial Community Hospital, Angola, in setting up a testing clinic on site at the plant near Orland that employs more than 1,000 in chicken processing.

 

The clinic consisted of a large tent with more than 40 members of the Cameron staff in personal protective equipment running a massive, assembly line of testing that covered May 1 and 2, officials said.

 

"We are trying to react early and stay in front of this wherever that takes us to keep our employees and communities safe," Plant Manager Kevin Diehl said May 4.

 

Connie McCahill, president and CEO at Cameron, said, "I have never been so proud of any team in my 50-plus years of nursing. In true Cameron fashion, we saw community members in need and our brave and heroic staff mobilised in extraordinary fashion. Logistics, equipment, supplies and most importantly staffing was all coordinated in an extremely condensed time-frame. We had over 40 staff members who stepped up to make this happen, and I cannot express how grateful I am to work beside such giving and fearless people. Swabbing 800 people seemed a daunting task until we mobilised and began the process. It is difficult to explain how remarkable an event it was."

 

Testing was done by a third-party, private vendor. Complete results were not available May 4, though Diehl said he thought positive numbers would be low or near zero.

 

"We are very proud of what we were able to accomplish in a very short amount of time to support our fellow community members. It was truly remarkable," Kelly Keirns, Cameron's director of strategy and development, said.

 

Cameron personnel started setting up equipment at 9 a.m. May 1 and started testing at 12:45 p.m. Some 600 people were swabbed by 6:45 p.m. On May 2, testing resumed at 5 a.m. and ended by 8 a.m. with an additional 160 getting swabbed.

 

Diehl said Miller is getting out in front of the virus, bringing in resources that have not been required by the government when the coronavirus reaches a certain level to require a state strike team, such as what has been done in Cass County at the Tyson Foods pork processing plant that closed for 14 days after some 900 employees tested positive for COVID-19.

 

"Though not at a threshold for which health officials typically bring in a special testing task force, Miller Poultry, with the help of Cameron Hospital, is pro-actively responding by testing all team members at the company's expense. In addition, Miller Poultry has been working with both county and state health officials to keep these cases isolated," Diehl said May 1.

 

If Miller would have used a state strike force team through the Indiana State Department of Health, it would not have been until May 8 that testing could have begun.

 

Unlike many of the other meat processors across the country that have run into huge problems with the spread of COVID-19, leading some to close and only be reopened by order of President Donald Trump, Miller could be the only such facility in Indiana to take matters in its own hands when it comes testing for the disease caused by the coronavirus.

 

Keirns said Cameron had many of the physical resources—tent, a bank of stainless steel sinks for sanitation and other equipment—at the ready so it was just a matter of it being setup onsite at Miller. Staff were completely gowned in PPE for the exercise.

 

Cameron's employees who participated in the testing have gone on quarantine at the instance of the hospital for 14 days. The employees are being paid. If they can work from home, they are doing so, also with pay, Keirns said. They should be able to return to work on May 14.

 

Miller will continue to focus on individual team members' health and personal welfare, Diehl said. An appreciation bonus of US$100 per week has been in place for all hourly workers for a month and has recently been extended by 6 weeks. This may be adjusted even further, Diehl said. In addition, for any employee suffering a legitimate COVID-19 illness or quarantine a paid leave has been instituted. Other aid is also available.

 

Of the seven positive cases from Miller that were reported May 1 from April 30 testing, Diehl said five were Steuben County residents.

 

In a report issued by the Steuben County Health Department on May 4, it was reported the county had 43 positive cases of COVID-19. There were 17 new cases reported May 4

 

For perspective, Steuben County reported its first positive case of COVID-19 on March 28. The county had not reached the 17 positive cases level until April 17. On May 1, it was reported that the county had 26 positive cases (14 of whom had recovered). That total shot up by 17, it was reported May 4, with a total positive count of 43.