Residents on three of the five floors at the IOOF long-term care homes — The Odd Fellow & Rebekah Manor — were placed in lockdown on Sunday due to potential exposure to COVID-19
The outbreak, which was declared March 28, was declared after one staff member tested positive for the virus, said chief executive officer Garry Hopkins.
“We have three floors that are in outbreak and it was the case of one staff member. All residents and all staff have been swabbed and we are just waiting for all of the results,” he told BarrieToday, adding so far all tests have come back negative. “We have no control over when we get them back, but they’re trickling in and the ones we have gotten back have been negative.”
Hopkins was not able to comment on whether or not the staff member who tested positive had been vaccinated, citing it would be an invasion of privacy to do so.
Residents on the three affected units at the Brooks Street complex will remain in isolation until the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit indicates the outbreak is over — which is typically 14 days from the last contact with the person with symptoms, assuming no other staff or residents test positive.
“The frustrating thing for families is (tests) don’t come back as quickly as one would like,” he said. “Staff handled it pretty well and understand the necessity of it, but it’s so difficult with residents trying to have them understand why this has to be so.
"I understand the policy… but isolating residents, in my view, is always difficult," Hopkins added.
