‘We just don’t know’: Georgian Bay General Hospital officials unsure how COVID-19 entered facility

Local health officials are still working to try to determine the source of a COVID-19 outbreak at Georgian Bay General Hospital.

“As far as how it got into our organization, we just don’t know,” said Dr. Dan Lee, COVID-19 medical lead and chief of emergency medicine at GBGH. “It is a tricky virus that can easily be spread, and sometimes it is difficult to tell how that happens.”

The outbreak at the Midland hospital was declared Dec. 4 after a staff member and patient tested positive for the virus. On Dec. 7, the hospital announced an additional 13 cases, with 12 more staff members and another patient testing positive.

Since then, hospital staff and those with the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit have been feverishly conducting contact tracing for all 15 reported cases in an attempt to find out how it spread through the facility.

“The (health unit) is still trying to determine what the index case may have been and how it may have been transferred,” said Lee.

Hospital officials are in charge of contact tracing for the staff at the hospital and are working to determine who else at GBGH may have come into contact with the 15 positive cases. Health unit officials are doing contact tracing out into the community, including looking at recent visitors to the hospital and patients who were recently discharged.

According to Lee, nearly 500 staff members have been tested for COVID-19 following the pair of positive tests on Dec. 4.

“We made a decision over the weekend to go above and beyond what the recommendations were (from the health unit) and test all staff at the hospital,” said Lee. “I think this is going to be very helpful in limiting the transmission.”

Protocols at GBGH have been ramped up in response to the outbreak, which started in the 2 North inpatient unit. Since then, all admissions to 2 North have been halted and staff have been prevented from moving between floors.

Staff are now required to put on a gown and gloves prior to assessing any patient at the hospital. Capacity restrictions have been enhanced for staff break rooms, and more spaces have been designated as break areas to allow staff to keep their distance from one another.

“We’ve enhanced all our protocols beyond (Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care) guidelines,” said Lee.

The outbreak currently only extends to the inpatient units at GBGH, including 2 North, 2 East, 1 North, the intensive-care unit and obstetrics. The emergency department is not part of the outbreak.

“It is still safe to come in,” said Lee. “Even if we go to a facility-wide outbreak, we have all of our enhanced protocols in place to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. If everyone is following the protocols — our staff, our visitors, our patients — then there is minimal risk.”

While all non-urgent and elective surgeries scheduled at the hospital have been postponed, residents are still encouraged to seek medical attention if they need it.