Niagara Health today declared outbreaks of COVID-19 on two medical units – the Sixth Floor Unit at the Welland Site and Unit 2A at the St. Catharines Site.
The outbreaks were called after three patients on St. Catharines Unit 2A and 11 patients on the Welland Sixth Floor Unit tested positive for COVID-19. All of the cases are healthcare associated.
The safety of everyone at our hospital sites is our top priority, and Niagara Health’s Infection Prevention and Control experts, working with our Occupational Health and Safety team, is monitoring the situation closely.
We have taken immediate steps to ensure the safety of our patients, staff and physicians.
Enhanced safety measures put in place include:
- Closure of the unit to new admissions or transfers, unless medically necessary
- Enhanced cleaning and disinfection of the unit.
- Contact tracing of affected patients, staff and visitors with appropriate follow up is ongoing.
- Visitors are not permitted on the unit.
Niagara Falls Site facility-wide outbreak over
The facility-wide COVID outbreak at the Niagara Falls Site is now over after 14 days of no new additional cases. Unit-specific outbreaks are ongoing on Unit C, Unit D, Trillium and the Intensive Care Unit.
We cannot emphasize enough how easily the virus spreads.
Today (Jan. 13), Niagara Health is caring for 77 patients with COVID-19, and the number of cases in the community continues to rise. This, along with the other COVID outbreaks we are managing, reinforces the need for everyone to follow public health guidelines, including physical distancing, proper and consistent mask usage, and regular hand washing.
