The staff of Heritage Ministries is continuing to monitor a COVID-19 outbreak at its Rolling Fields Elder Care Community in Conneautville, Pa.

On Monday, The Meadville Tribune reported that at least 22 employees and residents of Rolling Fields in Conneautville had tested positive for COVID-19, with more tests pending.

Heritage President and CEO Lisa Haglund traveled to the facility this week.

“The residents haven’t left the facility, so there are very few ways (infection could have started) after five months of us really using extraordinary measures to keep it out of the building,” Haglund said. “It had to probably come in with an employee, and our employees have to grocery shop. They have to do what all of us have to do. The really interesting thing in the Rolling Fields case is that every single person is asymptomatic.”

Haglund said that residents who have tested positive have been isolated in a special area, and that employees with positive tests have not been working.

With residents and staff not showing symptoms of the novel coronavirus, the infections were discovered during regular testing.

In addition to complying with new visitation guidelines issued by the New York State Department of Health, administrators of Heritage Ministries have the added challenge of following safety protocols in other states. Heritage operates several facilities in Chautauqua County covering assisted living, independent living and skilled nursing care in addition to affiliate locations such as The Kenney in Seattle, Wash. and Hearthstone in Woodstock, Ill.

“It certainly has been a challenge unlike any we have ever seen before,” Haglund said. “I’m very proud of our team who have proven to be up to the task. Our executive team behind the scenes has been juggling federal and state regulations across four states. Different testing requirements, different regulations.”

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact areas of the country differently, with New York state now showing a downward trend in cases after larger spikes in infection early on.

Heritage administrators have kept a close eye on rates of infection across the different states in which they operate facilities.

While New York has been able to move to a phased reopening of adult care facilities that will now include limited visitation with heightened precautions, Pennsylvania has not been able to do so yet.