WESTLOCK/ATHABASCA — Six more patients and four additional health care workers have tested positive for COVID-19 since last week at the Westlock and Athabasca Healthcare Centres, where two outbreaks have been declared.
According to a list of acute care outbreaks maintained by Alberta Health Services (AHS) that is updated every Tuesday, an outbreak was declared for one unit at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre on Sept. 19.
As of Oct. 10, a total of 21 patients at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre have tested positive for COVID-19. That represents an increase of four patients since the list of outbreaks was last updated Oct. 3.
Four healthcare workers at the Athabasca hospital have also tested positive for COVID-19.
Likewise, an outbreak was declared for one unit at the Westlock Healthcare Centre on Sept. 29.
Four patients at Westlock have tested positive for the virus, an increase of two since the list was updated a week ago. As well, five health care workers have also tested positive, an increase of four from the previous week.
The list indicates that these are the only two healthcare centres in the North Zone of AHS experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks, though facilities in other parts of Alberta are similarly affected.
As noted on the AHS website, outbreak control measures have been implemented on each of the affected units. Any patient with symptoms is isolated and treated in designated rooms, while at-risk patients undergo regular testing.
All healthcare workers are asked to self-assess for COVID-19 symptoms and exposure risk before reporting to a site for their shift, and front line teams practice diligent hand hygiene while at work.
