A COVID-19 outbreak at Menno Home in Abbotsford is now up to 34 cases.
An update posted on the website for Menno Place – of which Menno Home is a part – indicates that, as of Tuesday (Sept. 7), 21 residents and 13 staff had tested positive.
As well, a resident who tested positive and who was in palliative care before the outbreak has died.
“We continue to wait for the results of the first expanded point-prevalence testing; 157 residents and 124 staff are included in this swabbing,” the website states.
There is no breakdown of how many of the cases are among vaccinated and unvaccinated people. But the website states that the number of staff who are unvaccinated is a “small percentage of (the) staff team.”
“Exact numbers of unvaccinated staff will be made available to us through Fraser Health. We do not yet have that information.”
The website says the current outbreak has resulted in “relatively mild” symptoms for the vaccinated staff and residents who have tested positive.
RELATED: COVID-19 outbreak declared at Menno Home in Abbotsford
“(This) has been an encouragement to us that the vaccination is a layer of protection without which we would be reliving the experience we had last winter.”
Menno Home was the site of Abbotsford’s second largest COVID-19 outbreak, starting in November 2020. By the time the outbreak was declared over at the end of January, there had been a total of 67 cases (42 residents and 25 staff) and 13 deaths.
The outbreak resulted in the facility asking for family members to apply as paid “temporary relief workers” in the areas of housekeeping, food services and laundry due to staff shortages.
The recent outbreak was announced last Thursday (Sept. 2) by Fraser Health.
The website indicates that staff in all Menno Place buildings will currently be required to do a COVID-19 rapid test before every shift, regardless of their vaccination status.
Social visits are not permitted at the long-term care facility at this time, and essential visitors must wear full personal protective equipment.
Staff are limited to working only in their specific unit within Menno Home and are not allowed to move from unit to unit, the website states.
Social visits are permitted at other Menno Place locations.
Abbotsford’s largest COVID-19 outbreak was at Tabor Home, which had 156 cases (93 residents, 63 staff) and 26 deaths by the time it was declared over on Jan. 8.
RELATED: COVID-19 outbreak declared over at Menno Home in Abbotsford
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