LAKELAND — A patient from the South Georgia Medical Center Lakeland Villa facility has tested positive for COVID-19.

The patient tested positive for the coronavirus Monday and was hospitalized at the SGMC main hospital in Valdosta as of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, confirmed Johnny Ball, SGMC vice president for marketing and public affairs.

Four other patients at the facility received tests for COVID-19 after displaying potential symptoms and all four tested negative, Ball said.

The SGMC Lakeland Villa facility offers patients short-term rehabilitation care, long-term and hospice care, according to the SGMC website. 

After the patient tested positive, SGMC sent a COVID-19 response team to the facility and a decontamination unit to perform a deep cleaning, Ball said.

Made available by Gov. Brian Kemp, SGMC will call on a special disinfection unit of the National Guard to provide services for added sanitation, but the unit could take more than a week to arrive, according to a SGMC statement.