NYC hospital worker dies from coronavirus
Kious Kelly, 48, had reportedly tested positive for coronavirus two weeks ago. He died Tuesday night from complications. (Facebook)
NEW YORK - An assistant nursing manager at a Manhattan hospital has died from coronavirus.
Kious Kelly, 48, tested positive for coronavirus two weeks ago. He was admitted to Mount Sinai Hospital on the Upper East Side on March 17, according to his sister. He died Tuesday night from complications from the virus.
“He told me he had the coronavirus,” said Marya Sherron. “He was in ICU but he thought he was OK. He didn’t think it was serious as it was.”
MORE COVERAGE ON THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
Sherron said she “absolutely” believed her brother was infected at the hospital.
“I tried to get him several times but I was told by the doctors that he was on a ventilator,” Sherron told the NY Post.
He died at about 11 p.m. Tuesday.
“I know he is in heaven,” she said in a Facebook post.
A photo circulating online shows some nurses at Mount Sinai West where Kelly worked using garbage bags as protective gear over their hospital gowns.
Nurses and hospital staff report having to reuse masks, gowns and face shields because supplies are low.
A spokesman for the hospital says that the hospital strongly disagreed that they did not have the proper equipment and were not protecting their staff.
In a statement to FOX5 NY a hospital spokesperson said, "The safety and protection of all Mount Sinai staff and patients is always – and will always be - our absolute top priority, but especially during the COVID-19 crisis.
When it comes to staff wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), the facts are very different than recent media reports. To be clear: we always provide all our staff with the critically important PPE they need to safely do their job. In fact, the troubling photo circulating in the media specifically shows the nurses in proper PPE underneath garbage bags."
Mount Sinai issued a statement about Kelly's death.
“We are deeply saddened by the passing of a beloved member of our nursing staff. This growing crisis has already devastated hundreds of families and turned our frontline professionals into true American heroes,” the hospital network said.
Today, we lost another hero — a compassionate colleague, friend and selfless caregiver.”
There were 17,856 coronavirus cases in New York City as of Wednesday.
The height of the pandemic is approximately 21 days away, said NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo a day earlier.