Journal Staff
A management team from Bluewater Health has assumed leadership of infection control at Sarnia’s Vision Nursing Home, where Sarnia-Lambton’s worst COVID-19 outbreak continues to spread.
A seventh resident of the Wellington Street home has died, and one more resident and four additional staff members have tested positive, Lambton Public Health said this morning.
Hospital managers are now overseeing infection prevention, communications, and personal protective equipment.
Fifteen hospital employees are on-site supporting Vision staff with additional nursing, personal support, housekeeping and dietary assistance.
Four staff are deployed from Home and Community Care, with four more arriving shortly.
The collaboration is intended to protect the health of residents and staff at the 146-bed home, said Shannon Landry, the hospital’s Chief Nursing Executive.
“Vision is well known for their loving care … and we want to help support them to get back to a place where that can be the focus, not this virus.”
Twenty-four residents and 24 home staff have been infected, and seven residents have died.
On Wednesday, when the hospital announced the additional support, it said only nine of the residents were still COVID-positive. They are in isolation with the entire home in lock-down.
Sarnia-Lambton now has 261 cases, up seven from Wednesday, and 22 deaths. Five more people have recovered.
Meanwhile, Ontario has extended its emergency orders one additional week, from June 2 to June 9.
That includes restrictions on business openings and the ongoing closure of public amenities, like outdoor playgrounds and swimming pools.
Still in effect is the prohibition on physical gatherings of more than five people, not from the same family.
Some outdoor amenities are open, but the city is reminding residents to respect barriers and signage and to continue practice social distancing and good hand hygiene.
