Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital officials confirmed Friday morning the hospital has received its first result indicating a patient tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus.

“We had a positive COVID-19 test come back,” Henry Mayo spokesman Patrick Moody confirmed Friday.

“We do not have a COVID-19 patient at the hospital,” Moody said.

“If a patient qualifies for testing and is tested and doesn’t have any symptoms that would require hospitalization then they will be sent home to self-quarantine,” he said, referring to procedures on the Valencia hospital’s website:

How is Henry Mayo Prepared To Handle the Coronavirus?
We have procedures in place to screen patients and visitors who show signs or symptoms of the Coronavirus and who have a history that would indicate they are at risk of the disease.

If such a person is identified, they would be isolated and evaluated for their eligibility for a Coronavirus test. If they are not deemed eligible to be tested then the person will be sent home with appropriate instructions.

If they are deemed eligible to be tested then a test will be administered. If the person tested is not seriously ill, then he or she would be sent home and asked to self-quarantine until the test results come in.

If the test results come back positive and the person is still relatively healthy, then that person would be asked to continue to self-quarantine. (Please note that it generally takes two to six days to get COVID-19 test results.)

If the person is not well enough to go home and requires admission to the hospital, then we will treat them appropriately in an isolated room.

For questions about our infection control procedures, please call 661-200-1302, or send an e-mail to
moodypj@henrymayo.com.

This is a developing story. More information will be added as it becomes available.