Anh Gray

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

The Washoe County Health District is conducting its first antibody study to learn the prevalence of COVID-19 in the general population. This requires a blood test that looks for antibodies, which are the body’s immune response to a past infection.

Arbors Memory Care is an assisted living center in Sparks for seniors with Alzheimer's or dementia. In the span of about a month, 14 residents at the facility died from COVID-19. KUNR’s Anh Gray and Lucia Starbuck discuss what led to this outbreak.

As a warning, this story includes graphic images and videos containing violence that may be disturbing, along with inappropriate language.

Organizers of the Black Lives Matter protest on Saturday afternoon in Reno have denounced the violence that took place later that evening after the peaceful protest had ended. 

Lucia Starbuck was on the scene reporting for This Is Reno, and witnessed the events that unfolded at City Hall. She recounted what she saw with KUNR’s Anh Gray.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

The deployment of the Nevada National Guard is being extended until mid-August to help with COVID-19 relief efforts. 

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

About a quarter of Nevada’s COVID-19 deaths are associated with various state-regulated facilities. And for Washoe County, the ratio is even higher, accounting for more than half of the county’s 54 deaths.

KUNR’s Anh Gray reports that due to the no visitation policies implemented at these care facilities to mitigate infections, it’s been challenging for advocates who aren’t able to see residents.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

Arbors Memory Care in Sparks is a long-term care facility for seniors with Alzheimer’s or dementia. It was the site of Washoe County’s recent COVID-19 outbreak. Thirty-eight people have been confirmed and three residents have died. 

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected those living in long-term care facilities nationwide. In most states, at least a third of deaths are in those hotspots. And in Washoe County, the deaths associated at these centers account for more than half of the 48 total deaths so far.

KUNR’s Anh Gray reports that the pandemic exposes some particular vulnerabilities for older adults.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

Nevada has one of the highest rates of gun-related suicides in the nation. That’s according to the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence. KUNR’s Anh Gray spoke to Dakota Jablon, the suicide prevention specialist for the group. She says during the pandemic, there’s been an increase in gun sales, and she’s concerned that the combination of economic uncertainty and social isolation could exacerbate mental health issues for some.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

A hooding ceremony is a celebratory event steeped in tradition. For medical students, it’s the culmination of years of hard work. As a result of school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine held a virtual hooding for the 63 members of the 2020 graduating class. The pride, hope and joy conferred on graduates were still on full display on the screen.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

“Everyone’s a health reporter now: covering COVID-19 on other beats.” That was the headline of a March article written by David Maas for the International Journalists’ Network website. In the piece, he explains how the novel coronavirus pandemic has shifted the work of journalists nationwide.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

Editor's Note: On the morning of May 7, KUNR aired the following story and reported that there have been 86 confirmed COVID-19 cases at Lakeside Health and Wellness as of May 6. The data came from a Nevada Department of Health and Human Services database. After the story aired, the number on the database was updated on May 7 to 81 confirmed cases at Lakeside Health and Wellness.

KUNR reached out to the state health department for clarification and received the following email response: "Thank you for your email and question on the Lakeside Health and Wellness case information. The total of 81 is the confirmed case count. There was a reporting error that has been caught and corrected."

Thirty-seven people in Washoe County have died from COVID-19. More than half of those deaths are linked to one facility.  KUNR’s Anh Gray and Lucia Starbuck discuss what they’ve learned so far about the novel coronavirus outbreak in Washoe County.

Coverage of the novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

Public health officials are using contact tracing to track and isolate people infected with COVID-19 or those who might have been exposed. This is a routine public health surveillance tool that can be effective for infectious disease control, but the workforce needs to ramp up in order to respond to the coronavirus. In this report, KUNR's Anh Gray and Lucia Starbuck team up to explore the challenges with contact tracing and how the Nevada National Guard will be stepping in to fill some gaps. 

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

In early March, Nevadan make-up artist Ish Bermudez was touring with the show Chippendales Las Vegas across the country as a wardrobe manager. He began not feeling well while he was still on the road traveling in New York, Ohio and Indiana. He sought care at an urgent care facility, where he was given some pain medication, but a COVID-19 test wasn’t available.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

According to health officials, increasing COVID-19 testing capacity is one benchmark needed to gradually reopen Nevada. Early on in the pandemic, shortages of testing kits were an issue for Dr. Mark Pandori who runs the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory. That’s why he reached out to other scientists in the community to help fill the gaps. 

KUNR’s Anh Gray talked to one of them to learn if it’s possible to continue to ramp up production of testing materials.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

Editor's Note: This story aired before Washoe County Regional Information Center held a virtual press conference on April 24th. Washoe County Health District Kevin Dick provided new information about testing in the community. He says the state has requested the county to target 1,000 COVID-19 tests per day beginning Monday, April 27th. Dick says the county does not have the capacity to reach that target yet since there is currently still a shortage of testing supplies and equipment to process that amount. The district is currently working with the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory and other agencies to increase capacity, and will provide more information on the process next week. 

When will the state’s shutdown be lifted is on the minds of many Nevadans. Governor Steve Sisolak held a press conference earlier this week to update residents.

“Due to the criteria that was developed by the state team and in accordance with White House guidance,” Sisolak said, “as of right now, I can not give you a firm date as to whether we will meet all of this criteria to begin phase one reopening plans.”

As KUNR’s Anh Gray reports, those criteria include meeting health benchmarks, which will require more testing.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

There are surges of COVID-19 patients at hospitals in some hotspots around the country, but overall, emergency room visits are actually down nationwide. However, some local medical providers are concerned that people are avoiding care due to fears of catching COVID-19.

Coverage of novel coronavirus is supported by the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D., Project for Visualizing Science, a science reporting project from the Reynolds School of Journalism.

There have been 15 COVID-19-related deaths in Washoe County so far. A third of those deaths are tied to two state-regulated facilities in Reno. KUNR News Director Michelle Billman checks in with Anh Gray, KUNR's public health reporter, for more information about those two outbreaks.