Oct. 15.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cIn a hospital setting an outbreak is declared based on the criteria outlined by the Provincial Infectious Diseases Advisory Committee on Infection Prevention and Control,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
PIDAC defines an outbreak as two or more patients testing positive for the same respiratory virus within a defined area, \u201cwith symptom onset occurring within a 48-hour period, and where at least two cases could reasonably have been acquired within the health-care setting.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hospital is continuing with outbreak management protocols to ensure the safety of patients, staff, and visitors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThese measures include enhanced infection prevention and control practices, increased testing, and temporary restrictions on admissions and transfers to and from the affected unit,\u201d Clement said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While Unit 1B remains open for essential caregivers, general visitor access is restricted.<\/p>\n
“An essential caregiver is a person chosen by the patient to provide vital support and participate in their care and decision-making. This designation ensures that patients continue to receive the emotional and practical assistance they need during their stay,” Clement said.<\/p>\n
“Please note that care needs vary from patient to patient, and our staff work closely with each individual and their family to ensure appropriate support is provided\u2014including during declared outbreaks,” she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe appreciate the understanding and cooperation of our community as we prioritize the health and well-being of our patients.\u201d<\/p>\n
In alignment with the Government of Ontario\u2019s initiative to protect communities from respiratory illnesses, Sault Area Hospital is implementing a comprehensive immunization strategy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis initiative includes the provision of Influenza, COVID-19, and RSV vaccinations to eligible staff, patients, and community members,” Clement said in mid October.<\/p>\n
As of Oct. 1, RSV immunization has been made available to all newborns delivered at Sault Area Hospital.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe strongly encourage all eligible individuals to receive their vaccinations to help reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses,\u201d Clement said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a complete list\u00a0of local vaccination sites that community members can access, visit the Government of Ontario\u2019s website.<\/a>
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The hospital is continuing with outbreak management protocols to ensure the safety of patients, staff, and visitors The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5050,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[49,48,84,392,115320],"class_list":["post-246032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-healthcare","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health","tag-healthcare","tag-sault-area-hospitalcovid-19"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5050"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}