Another COVID-19 outbreak has been identified at a Barrie long-term care facility.
Allandale Station Retirement Residence confirmed in a statement posted to their website there has been one lab-confirmed case of COVID-19 at the Yonge Street facility.
The residence confirmed the outbreak in a statement from MTCO Holdings president Steve Graham on May 2.
The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit has also confirmed the outbreak on their website.
An outbreak is declared at a long-term care facility as soon as one case of COVID-19 is confirmed in a resident or staff member.
The statement from Graham doesn’t indicate whether the confirmed case is a resident or staff member.
“As directed by public health, we have activated the required enhanced infection control measures to contain the outbreak for the safety of our residents and staff,” reads the statement on the Allandale Station website. “We will continue to monitor the health of all residents and staff and remain vigilant in our efforts to protect all of our residents and team members.”
Allandale Station indicates there are infection control protocols in place already, including personal protective equipment use by staff, screening of staff and essential visitors twice per shift, regular screening of residents twice daily, and increased cleaning and disinfection.
Residents at the facility are also isolated to their suites and meals are being delivered to them. All group activities are cancelled.
Allandale Station reports it has notified all residents, families, and team members of the outbreak.
“Now, more than ever, the well-being of our residents and team members is the top priority of everyone within our organization,” reads Graham’s statement.
Over the next two weeks, Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit is working with long-term care facilities and other health-care partners to test every resident and staff member at every long-term care facility in the Simcoe-Muskoka region.
The testing has been mandated by the province.
In total there will be 3,550 residents and 4,250 staff tested at 29 long-term care facilities plus one extended care centre in Rama in the next two weeks.
“We’ve got a schedule that’s very aggressive in order to achieve that,” said Dr. Charles Gardner, the region’s medical officer of health. “It will be a challenge to accomplish, but that is our goal.”
This is the fifth outbreak declared at a long-term care facility in Barrie, and the eighth in the region.
At Owen Hill Care Community, seven residents and four staff have tested positive. Garder confirmed the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit has worked with local assessment centres and Owen Hill to test 121 people, including 54 residents and 67 staff members. Owen Hill, located on Owen Street, is a 57-bed facility, according to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
At Woods Park Care Centre, two staff have tested positive, and tests have been done for 272 people including 161 staff and 111 residents. Woods Park Care Centre is a 123-bed facility located on Lillian Crescent in Barrie.
At IOOF, one staff member has tested positive, and there have been 159 residents and 286 staff tested. IOOF Seniors Home, located on Brooks Street in Barrie, is a 182-bed facility.
At Bradford Valley Care Community, there have been 11 staff and 34 residents confirmed positive for COVID-19. Nine residents have died, one has recovered and six staff have recovered. In total, 165 staff and 249 residents have been tested. There are 246 beds at that facility.
Gardner said not all the results have come back from those tests yet.
There was also an outbreak declared at Whispering Pines Retirement Residence on Letitia Street in Barrie, where one staff member has tested positive. This outbreak was reported May 1.
In Waubaushene, Bayview Retirement Home is also in outbreak with one staff member testing positive. Gardner didn’t report testing numbers for this facility.
Spencer House in Orillia was in outbreak, but that designation has since been lifted. At that facility, one staff member tested positive, but there were no further positive results reported.
The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit does not provide COVID-19 case and outbreak updates on the weekend. They are scheduled to provide an update on Monday afternoon.
