Simcoe Manor in Beeton is facing one of the largest COVID-19 outbreaks the region has seen.
Four COVID-positive residents have died while 30 others remain infected out of the 124 seniors who call Simcoe Manor home.
Simcoe Manor is a long-term care home in New Tecumseth and is owned by the County of Simcoe.
There have also been 19 positive cases among the staff since the outbreak was declared on Oct. 2.
"The Town of New Tecumseth was doing very well with the COVID-19; unfortunately, one of our manors, Simcoe Manor, was affected,” said New Tecumseth Mayor Rick Milne. “The Simcoe-Muskoka health unit, through the county and through the municipality, jumped on it very rapidly and started segregating the staff and doing tests.”
Milne offered his condolences to the residents and their families who passed away while infected by the virus.
Currently, 17 of the active cases among residents are asymptomatic, exhibiting none of the associated symptoms of COVID-19. Around 80 per cent of all infections are mild or asymptomatic, according to the World Health Organization.
“The coronavirus has proved challenging across the globe as many COVID-positive individuals do not suffer any symptoms, making it very difficult to contain,” the County of Simcoe noted in a recent update.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Long-Term Care announced it had issued a mandatory management order appointing Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) to temporarily manage Simcoe Manor on behalf of the County of Simcoe, starting Oct. 9.
RVH will manage the long-term care home for 90 days.
The community in New Tecumseth has banded together to support Simcoe Manor staff and residents through the outbreak. Tim Hortons sent coffee for the staff and letters have came in for the residents from the community offering words of support and encouragement.
New Tecumseth, as a whole, has seen 164 cases since the start of the pandemic, with 46 of them still active as of the time of publication. October has accounted for 60 new cases so far, compared to just 18 in all of September.
Despite the outbreak in Simcoe Manor, most transmission happening in the region is from community spread for the second wave.
Milne said it’s important that people remain vigilant to reduce the impact of COVID-19 locally.
"Wash your hands, wear your mask and keep the distance and we'll beat this," he said.
Sam Odrowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, New Tecumseth Times
