Bartholomew County Health Department officials have received 1,000 hepatitis A vaccines in preparation for an immunization clinic for customers who may have eaten at Amazing Joe’s restaurant in late April.
The restaurant, at 2607 Central Ave., closed Wednesday to have all surfaces in the facility sanitized after the health department was notified that a female Amazing Joe’s employee, who has described herself as a bartender and server on social media, was exhibiting hepatitis A symptoms while working there in late April.
While it is relatively rare for restaurant patrons to become infected with hepatitis A due to an infected food handler, Bartholomew County Health Department administrator Collis Mayfield said that anyone who consumed food or drink at the restaurant on April 22 and April 24-26 should consider being vaccinated at a free clinic planned for Monday.
A vaccination clinic will be from noon to 6 p.m. Monday at the FairOaks Mall at the old Toys-R-Us storefront, 2380 25th St., where those who might be impacted may receive a free vaccination for potential exposure to hepatitis A. The vaccine must be administered within two weeks after the last day of exposure, according to the health department.
Anyone who can’t attend the clinic is asked to contact their personal medical provider.
Anyone who consumed food and/or drink at Amazing Joe’s on April 17 through 22 is advised to monitor symptoms for hepatitis A infection up to 50 days after exposure, as the vaccine will not be effective in preventing illness for anyone exposed more than 14 days ago, the health department said.
Hepatitis A is a viral liver infection that can cause loss of appetite, nausea, tiredness, fever, stomach pain, brown-colored urine and light-colored stools. Yellowing of the skin or eyes may also occur, according to the health department.
The virus spreads when a person unknowingly ingests the virus from objects, food or drinks contaminated by small, undetected amounts of feces from an infected person, the health department said.
The virus spreads when an infected person does not wash his or her hands adequately after using the toilet or engages in behaviors that increase risk of infection, the health department said.
Aaron Sanders, health department environmental health specialist, said the health department was notified about the employee’s hepatitis A infection on Tuesday after receiving a communicable disease report from a treating physician, who is required to report cases to the health department.
Amazing Joe’s took the action to close and sanitize the restaurant on Wednesday, with guidance from state health officials, Mayfield said. The restaurant was required to use a concentrated chlorine bleach solution of 500 parts per million, and let it stand for one minute on all surfaces in the restaurant, such as tables, chairs, door handles and kitchen surfaces, Sanders said.
Nick Grams, Amazing Joe’s manager, said the restaurant also made arrangements with the health department to vaccinate about half of the restaurant’s 45-member staff who had not been previously vaccinated.
Mayfield said he could not answer a question about why employees who had been exposed to the virus and subsequently vaccinated would be allowed to participate in sanitizing the restaurant, saying that is a question for state officials who vaccinated the employees.
The risk of transmission from exposed staff, not an actual hepatitis A case, is extremely low, said Greta Sanderson, communications project manager for the state health department. “Because hepatitis A is transmitted through a fecal oral route, there is no risk of transmission through exposed employees who are using proper hand hygiene and wearing gloves as required,” she said.
The infected employee has worked at the restaurant for about a year, Grams said. In postings on social media, the employee indicated she was infected from another food worker, but Mayfield said health department investigators do not agree with some of the statements that have been made about her infection.
While the health department has confirmed that there is only one employee who was infected, it is possible other employees could have the virus, Mayfield said. “It’s probably only the one,” he said.
Grams and Mike Robinson, president of Veritas Management Inc., the company that owns Amazing Joe’s, declined to comment about why there was no notice posted at the restaurant to customers about the infected employee when the restaurant reopened Thursday night, and why there was no notification to customers who may have eaten at the restaurant on the April dates to notify them of the need to be vaccinated or seen by a doctor.
Mayfield said there is no requirement in state law for the restaurant to have to notify its clientele about a hepatitis A case among their employees.
Sanders and Mayfield said the restaurant was inspected after the sanitizing process and cleared to open for business on Thursday.
Mayfield said Indiana is one of several states experiencing a hepatitis A outbreak, and there has been one recent death reported in Indiana from the virus. While Bartholomew County normally sees about six to seven unrelated cases of hepatitis A in a year, in 2018 Bartholomew’s total doubled to 18 or 19, he said.
However the Amazing Joe’s case is the first in which one infected person has had the possible impact of infecting hundreds of people in a single location, according to the health department.
This is Bartholomew County’s first time in dealing with that type of situation dealing with hepatitis A, he said.
While the county has 1,000 doses of the vaccine, Mayfield said it is likely that only about 300 to 400 doses will be needed at the vaccine clinic.
However, the protocol also calls for a follow-up booster six months from now for those receiving the vaccine, said Amanda Organist, who works in the health department’s nursing division. While the first shot is free, the booster shot will not be, she said.
Those needing the booster shot may make an appointment at the health department to receive it, and insurance may cover it, she said. For those who don’t have insurance, the cash payment for the booster is $68, which is the department’s cost, she said.
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The Bartholomew County Health Department is offering a hepatitis A vaccination clinic for individuals who consumed food or drink at Amazing Joe’s restaurant on April 22, and April 24 through 26.
The clinic is from noon to 6 p.m. Monday at FairOaks Mall’s former Toys-R-Us storefront, 2380 25th St. to receive a free vaccination.
Those who can’t attend the vaccination clinic should contact their doctor.
While the employee infected with hepatitis A worked while ill on April 17-22, and April 24-26, the vaccine must be administered within two weeks after the last day of exposure, meaning the vaccine will not be effective for those who were exposed more than 14 days ago.
For more information, call the health department at 812-379-1555.
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Hepatitis A is a viral liver infection that can cause loss of appetite, nausea, tiredness, fever, stomach pain, brown-colored urine and light-colored stools. Yellowing of the skin or eyes may also occur, according to the health department.
The virus spreads when a person unknowingly ingests the virus from objects, food or drinks contaminated by small, undetected amounts of feces from an infected person, the health department said.
The virus spreads when an infected person does not wash his or her hands adequately after using the toilet or engages in behaviors that increase risk of infection, the health department said.
People can become ill up to seven weeks after being exposed.
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Careful hand washing, including washing under the fingernails, with soap and water, and obtaining a hepatitis A vaccination, will prevent the spread of the disease.
Indiana law has required the vaccine for school admission since 2014 and it is required for students entering the sixth grade and 12th grade in 2018, so many school-age children have been vaccinated.
For more information, visit: in.gov/isdh/.
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