Province investigating potential COVID-19 outbreaks in care homes

One of the Saskatchewan government’s biggest fears about COVID-19 — a potential outbreak in a care home — may have come to fruition.

During a conference call with the media Friday, Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer said there were two new instances of people, either staff members or residents, testing positive for the virus in a seniors facility.

The first case Dr. Saqib Shahab cited was at Regina’s Eden Care Communities, where a staff member has tested positive. It’s the second time an Eden Care employee has contracted the virus.

Shahab said three of the facility’s residents had symptoms and were under investigation by public health officials.

The second case is at a long-term care facility in La Loche, where one resident was among three people who have tested positive.

Shahab called it “an outbreak situation,” noting that 10 residents are being monitored along with 10 staff members who aren’t close contacts.

“These two examples really emphasize all the steps that are being taken today in terms of updating the public health order, which now includes and emphasizes through an order all the steps that the (Saskatchewan Health Authority) has already been putting in place,” Shahab said. “(That) includes that staff restrict work to one facility and do not work in more than one facility.”

On Friday — when the province announced two new cases and nine more recoveries — Shahab updated the public health order in hopes of further protecting seniors.

Starting April 28, long-term care and personal care homes must ensure that each staff member works in only one facility. The only exception is if a care home is unable to ensure adequate staffing levels because of the order.

Staff members in long-term care, personal care and affiliate care homes must undergo a health screening prior to entry to the facility, including a temperature check, and monitor themselves for symptoms.

As well, all staff members in those homes must wear a mask at all times. If personal protective equipment is required, it too must be worn.

The screening and personal protective equipment measures also apply to Saskatchewan Cancer Agency facilities and staff.

The initial public health order also set out visitor restrictions for long-term care homes, hospitals, personal care homes and group homes, allowing only family members or designates to visit for compassionate reasons. Those restrictions remain in place.

Visitors also must undergo additional health screening before entering the facility.

“We hope that these additional measures will continue to minimize the ongoing risk not just in these two impacted facilities but all long-term care facilities, personal care homes and assisted living facilities in Saskatchewan,” Shahab said.

A look at the numbers

One of the new cases reported by the province Friday has been confirmed and one is considered presumptive. The total number of cases in the province is now 307.

The total number of recoveries stands at 228. That number, added to the number of deaths in the province to date (four), means there are 75 active cases.

Six people are in hospital, including one person in intensive care in Regina. Three people in Regina and two people in Saskatoon are receiving inpatient care.

Of the 307 cases in the province, 133 are travel-related, 129 are community contacts or are linked to mass gatherings, 29 don’t have any known exposures, and 16 are still being investigated by local public health officials.

The Saskatoon region has had the most cases with 147, followed by Regina (69), the northern area of the province (58), the south (15), the central region (10) and the far north (eight).

Of the 75 active cases, 40 are in Saskatoon, 18 are in Regina, seven live in the north, six reside in the far north and two are in each of the central region and in the south.

The 228 recoveries comprise 106 in Saskatoon, 50 each in Regina and the north, 13 in the south, seven in the central region and two in the far north.

The government’s release noted that the age categories of cases have been changed to align with national data.

There are 110 cases in the 20-to-39 age range, 105 in the 40-to-59 range, 62 in the 60-to-79 classification, 23 who are aged 19 and under, and seven in the 80-and-over range.

There were 638 tests done Thursday to bring the province’s total to date to 22,207.

Premier Scott Moe once again told reporters on the conference call the province has the capacity to reach and exceed his stated goal of 1,500 tests per day, and to do the contact tracing necessary after those tests are performed.

But while referencing the new guidelines being put in place for seniors facilities, Moe admitted more needs to be done by all of the province’s residents.

“We cannot prevent everyone from contracting COVID-19,” he said. “What we can do is slow the spread of this virus by proper physical distancing, by identifying where our high-risk residents are — in those long-term care homes, for example. We strengthened some of the restrictions around long-term care homes this week and again today.

“But we will have COVID-19 cases here in the province as we move forward and we will have local flareups in certain areas of the province as we go through the next number of weeks and months.”