Coronavirus claims 2 health care workers in Northern Nevada
RENO — Two of the 10 COVID-19 deaths reported in Washoe County as of Thursday have been health workers, the latest coming Tuesday.
Nurse Vianna Thompson, 52, worked floating shifts at the VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System and at Northern Nevada Medical Center, both in Reno. She died Tuesday at the VA hospital, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.
“It’s tragic that we have had a couple of health care workers that have passed away from this disease,” Washoe County Health Officer Kevin Dick said at a news briefing Wednesday. “They’re obviously a front line in working to provide care for for people in our community, and my heart goes out to their families and their loved ones.”
The earlier death, a woman in her 30s with underlying health conditions, was reported March 30 as the county’s second death.
She was later identified in news reports as a counselor at Willow Springs Center, a residential youth treatment facility in Reno. The center reported a COVID-19 outbreak involving residents and staff in late March.
The Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health is investigating the outbreak.
Contact Capital Bureau reporter Bill Dentzer at bdentzer@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DentzerNews on Twitter.
