EvergreenHealth has confirmed two patients are believed to have contracted COVID-19 while receiving inpatient care at the Kirkland campus.

The hospital is still investigating where the patients may have come into contact with the virus, according to a press release, and contacting 100 employees who had various levels of possible exposure to the patients. Employees with more possible exposure are being tested.

EvergreenHealth Chief Medical & Quality Officer Ettore Palazzo stated in a press release that the cases are a “very unfortunate reminder that everyone needs to remain astutely vigilant” to help stop the spread of the virus.

“We believe these two patients contracted the novel coronavirus while in our care. However, due to the nature of how this virus is transmitted, the actual transmission source is unclear,” Palazzo stated. “The virus may have been transmitted through a health care worker, family member or visitor. We cannot be definitively certain.”

On Sept. 16, according to EvergreenHealth, Washington state Department of Health (DOH) and Centers for Disease Control visited the campus to review it’s policies and procedures, in light of the hospital-acquired cases of COVID-19.

Palazzo stated that the hospital has been depending on guidance from those organizations as well as trusted health officials including Public Health – Seattle King County. In the statement, Palazzo said EvergreenHealth will “continue to evolve based on our collective learnings” on providing safe health environments during the pandemic.

EvergreenHealth states in notified DOH as soon as it received the test results.