NEW BRITAIN, Conn. (WTNH) — Hospital of Central Connecticut is taking action after three employees were diagnosed with Mumps.
Related: UConn: Three students diagnosed with mumps during Fall 2019 semester
Jack Ross, Chief of Infectious Diseases for Hartford Healthcare, reported that all three diagnosed worked in the Emergency Department and all recognized similar symptoms within day of each other, which lead doctors to believe they were all exposed to the same patient with Mumps.
Each of the diagnosed staff members is believed to have had exposure between November 29-December 3 and experienced symptoms weeks later – sometime between Dec. 16-18.
The original Mumps patient has not been identified.
Symptoms of Mumps are very similar to that of the flu. One major symptom is used to tell them apart: swelling of the jaw.
Friday, the hospital is taking action to protect patients and workers. Officials are encouraging anyone who may be in a “outbreak setting” to get a third dose of the Mumps vaccine. The hospital has started offering the third dose to those who work in their emergency department.
They say after that dose is distributed, they’ll expand it to the rest of the hospital.
Officials say the Mumps is not as contagious as the Measles, but can still be passed through sneezing or coughing.
The hospital is now alerting patients and staff that they could have been exposed between Dec. 14-22.
This isn’t the only outbreak the state has seen this month.
Three students at University of Connecticut were diagnosed this semester. The university encourages student with signs and symptoms consistent with possible Mumps to seek medical care immediately.
