THUNDER BAY REGIONAL – While Dr. Stewart Kennedy says he’s certain there has been no spread of COVID-19 following a declared outbreak at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, he is concerned about the impact on staffing.
In addition to the two staff members who last week tested positive for the virus, seven additional employees considered close contacts of the two cases have also been sent home to self-isolate as a precaution.
The hospital on Friday posted a notice to its website announcing two separate cases, neither of which administration and public health could definitively says weren’t contracted at Thunder Bay Regional, at unit 1A in the hospital’s oncology unit.
By definition, two cases with uncertain origins at the hospital requires an outbreak to be declared.
Kennedy on Monday said the hospital has closed off the unit in question, but is still treating patients who would normally be seen in the oncology department.
“We’ve tested all the patients on the 1A oncology unit and they are all negative at this point in time. They will be tested over the next several days again,” Kennedy said. “We’re still taking admissions for oncology patients, but they will not be going to the 1A unit. The 1A unit is now closed. It’s closed to all essential care partners, except for end-of-life care.”
New admissions are being housed in other areas of the hospital and staff in the unit is not moving back and forth between other departments, again as a precaution.
“The hospital is safe and it’s safe for all of our patients coming here for outside diagnostics and also for admissions,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy said there should be no interruption to treatment for oncology patients, saying the only specialized equipment on the unit is for chemotherapy treatment for day patients and it’s been moved to the cancer clinic for the time being.
“We’re segregating that population,” Kennedy said. “We move patients around all the time, but because our bed capacity is about 90 per cent, we have the ability to move patients in the appropriate places as best we can.”
Kennedy said it’s not the first time hospital staff has tested positive, pointing to a previous in the intensive care unit and another in the cardiology unit.
“Those contacts were, for the most part, outside of the hospital. But I’m really concerned when our staff is becoming infected because we don’t have an unlimited supply of staff. I do respect what our staff is doing. They’re doing a great job keeping their PPE on, they’re doing a great job washing their hands and keeping their distance,” Kennedy said.
“But in an environment like this, breakage is going to occur from time to time with the PPE. And you can’t eat with a mask on. You can't drink with a mask on.”
The hospital is reviewing its policies to determine if there is a safer way for staff to interact in lunchrooms and meetings, which Kennedy said are the two most worrisome danger points in the facility.
There are a total of four COVID-19 patients in the hospital, including one in the ICU.
