A patient recently died after contracting Legionnaires' disease at a nursing home in Rhode Island, reports the Providence Journal.
State health officials confirmed the illness Jan. 22 but said Legionnaires' may not be the patient's cause of death. The elderly individual died at Elderwood of Scallop Shell at Wakefield (R.I.) earlier this month and may have had underlying health conditions, according to NBC affiliate WJAR.
The nursing home has been using bottled water as a precaution and replaced every air and water filter in the facility, along with nozzles, faucets and shower heads.
"Our immediate focus has been on the care and safety of our residents," Chuck Hayes, vice president of marketing and communications for Elderwood, told WJAR. "The clinical staff at Elderwood has implemented pre-established protocols and procedures to ensure the safety and well-being of all residents and workers at the facility and is working closely with the Rhode Island Department of Health."
At present, the nursing home has not reported any other Legionnaires' cases.