Dale Boyd
Osoyoos Times
Outbreak protocols are in place at the Hawthorn Park and Orchard Manor long-term care facility in Kelowna, where a single staff member has tested positive for COVID-19.
The case marks the first in a long-term care facility in the Interior Health region to date, with 347 cases in long-term care facilities or acute care facilities across the province — 217 of which are residents.
The two sites are connected by a common building and together the facility includes 161 beds, none of which are health authority funded, according to Interior Health. The outbreak is declared for the “full campus of care.”
“Interior Health and the operator, Verve Senior Living, are taking steps to protect the health of everyone at Hawthorn Park and Orchard Manor. Communication with residents and families is underway and there are dedicated staff resources at the site responding to questions from residents, families and staff,” Interior Health said in a statement.
An IH response team of infection control and environmental health experts is working with the facility to assess and recommend the required response. The movement of staff and residents within the sites has been restricted and cleaning and infection control measures have been increased, Interior Health stated, along with daily symptom screening of all residents and staff.
“Any individual deemed to have had significant contact with the case has been directed to self isolate at home for 14 days. Both residents and staff at this facility will be monitored very closely, with testing and isolation as appropriate.”
The health authority stated it will continue to have a presence at the site to take any further actions required, and support the facility.
There were 29 new test-positive COVID-19 cases in B.C. on April 23, bringing the total to 1,824 province-wide, with 1,092 cases fully recovered. Three new cases in the Interior Health region bring the total to 156 Thursday.
Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry announced another outbreak at a poultry facility, with two positive tests at the Superior Poultry plant in Coquitlam, a “sister plant” to the United Poultry processing facility in East Vancouver where the province announced 28 employees had tested positive for COVID-19 on April 21. There are 29 cases related to the United Poultry outbreak as of Thursday.
There are 78 cases currently at the Mission Institution federal correctional centre.
Four deaths were reported in B.C. Thursday, one in the Fraser Health region and one in Vancouver Coastal, bringing the total number of deaths in the province related to COVID-19 to 94.
There are 103 people in hospital for COVID-19 related reasons throughout B.C., 10 of which are in Interior Health. Health Minister Adrian Dix noted that number remained unchanged since Wednesday, and is down from the peak of 149 hospitalized cases in early April.
