Norovirus

The kitchen of a Lawrence retirement home was closed over the weekend and residents received meals in their apartments to prevent the spread of the norovirus.

More than a dozen cases of the virus were recently reported within Meadowlark Estates Gracious Retirement Living, 4430 Bauer Farm Drive, said regional director Scott Hysler.

In total, 27 cases were reported among residents and staff members, said Karrey Britt, communications director for the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department. The entire facility houses 127 residents. No deaths were reported due to the outbreak, Britt said.

Because the illness is highly contagious and the kitchen is a social area, the facilities were shut down on Friday.

“We take it very seriously,” Hysler said. “We have a full protocol, and we start deep cleaning and continuous wipe-downs of every single touchable surface.

“Anything that’s touched or breathed on we do some pretty extensive cleaning,” he added.

Hysler said the use of the word “quarantine” would be inaccurate because residents and their families are allowed to come and go as they please.

The facility contacted the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department on Thursday, and the two organizations worked together to prevent further illnesses.

Britt said the virus is a gastrointestinal infection that involves diarrhea and vomiting.

“It’s not uncommon, but it is highly contagious,” she said.

No new cases of the virus have been reported since Friday, Britt said.

The kitchen reopened Monday, Hysler said.

The norovirus also recently sickened hundreds of people at a dinner theater in Johnson County. New Theatre Restaurant reportedly spent about $40,000 to clean the theater in January after the outbreak. The cleaning operation was similar to what is used on contaminated cruise ships.

“It has been in the area, but we haven’t had much of it in Douglas County,” Britt said.