(KNZA)--A case of COVID-19 has been confirmed in Jackson County.

That word Thursday in a news release issued by the Northeast Kansas Multi-County Health Department.

The release said their office was notified Wednesday evening that a resident in Jackson County had tested positive for COVID-19. It's the first confirmed case in Jackson County.

The release says the individual is in isolation and following the recommendations of health officials. Staff in the Multi-County Health Department Office immedidately began work on identifying contacts of the individual Wednesday evening.

The agency continues to recommend that people that have symptoms associated with a respiratory illness stay home and call their medical provider if their symptoms require medical attention.

In addition, they highly enourage all people to follow the recommendations of KDHE and CDC regarding social distancing.

As of Thursday afternoon, there were 34 confirmed cases in Kansas.

Editors note: below is the press release issued March 19 by the Holton Community Hospital due to the positive confirmation. 

First Confirmed Case of COVID-19 in Jackson County

As announced earlier today by the Jackson County Health Department Jackson County, Kansas does have its first confirmed case of COVID-19. Please rest assured, our staff members followed our established guidelines and wore the proper personal protective equipment and the patient was safely tested in our triage area located outside our facility, said Hospital CEO, Carrie Saia.

With this announcement Holton Community Hospital and Family Practice Associates are taking additional steps to ensure your safety. As of tomorrow, March, 20, 2020 our physician’s clinics located in Hoyt and Wetmore will be closed until April 1, 2020. Our Senior Life Solutions program is also suspended at this time. As we are trying to limit the number patients entering our facility, we are also cancelling all elective surgeries. We will re-evaluate additional time-lines within the next few weeks, Saia said.

Please if you are experiencing symptoms of this virus; fever, cough or shortness of breath call our Holton clinic first at 785-364-2116. We have staff ready to assist you with proper procedures in place. We are here to help guide you through the process. We have also established a COVID-19 hotline (785-364-9619) which is available Monday-Friday from 10am – 3pm. “It is important we work together to mitigate the spread of this virus,” Saia said.

“We know this a difficult time for our community. We are working daily to continue to provide our community the best possible healthcare. It is now more important than ever for our citizens to continue to practice social distancing and other guidelines set-forth by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the CDC,” said Dr. Malia Warner, Chief of the Medical Staff at Holton Community Hospital. “Lastly, we need to continue to support each other and reach out to others in a safe manner such as texting, video conferencing or a phone call. We will get through this if all encourage and help one another.”