UMass Memorial establishes coronavirus task force

Photo | Grant Welker UMass Memorial Health Care's University Campus in Worcester

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By Grant Welker

UMass Memorial Health Care in Worcester has set up a task force to oversee preparations related to the coronavirus outbreak.

The task force is aimed at monitoring the outbreak worldwide, staying current with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updates, working closely with the Worcester Department of Public Health and other health officials, and finalizing readiness measures, including distribution of protective equipment.

The task force was created as alarm has grown about the likeliness of coronavirus spreading in the United States.

A CDC alert on Tuesday called spread of the outbreak inevitable in the U.S..

"It's not so much a question of if this will happen anymore but rather more a question of exactly when this will happen and how many people in this country will have severe illness," said Dr. Nancy Messionner, the director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

The CDC most recently reported 14 confirmed coronavirus cases nationally, with 445 people tested. The World Health Organization has reported 82,000 cases worldwide and more than 2,800 deaths as of Thursday.

UMass first alerted staff in late January to look for potential signs of illness in those who had traveled to China or Southeast Asia. That has since been expanded to those who've traveled to Hong Kong, Italy, Iran, Japan and South Korea.

The UMass task force, which includes each of the system's hospital campuses in Worcester, Leominster, Marlborough and Clinton, is co-chaired by Gina Smith, the director of emergency management and preparedness, and Dr. Dick Ellison, the hospital epidemiologist.