By Cecilia Nasmith
Northumberland County announced Sunday that the COVID-19 outbreak at the Golden Plough Lodge is over.
The Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ridge District Health Unit declared the GPL to be in outbreak Dec. 21, following a positive test result in one asymptomatic employee. As per Ministry of Health guidelines, a long-term-care facility is considered to be in outbreak once a single case has been confirmed in a staffer or resident.
As part of outbreak management protocols, all residents and staff have since been tested for the virus. All results have come back negative, confirming there was no transmission within the home.
“I am pleased to share that, through strict infection control practices, the COVID-19 outbreak declared at our facility was contained to one asymptomatic staff member,” GPL Administrator Bill Detlor said in the announcement.
“This is welcome news for our residents, families and staff, and a wonderful way to begin 2021.
“I want to thank our local health unit for their collaboration and support. And I especially want to express my sincere gratitude to our incredible staff, who have demonstrated enormous resilience and dedication to our residents throughout this process and throughout the entire pandemic.”
Going forward, the facility will continue with weekly COVID-19 testing of all staff, as well as twice-daily screening of all staff and residents.
During the provincial lockdown, restrictions remain in place, including the suspension of short-stay absences and general visitor restrictions.
The GPL is pleased to welcome Essential Caregivers back to the facility starting Wednesday, Jan. 6, with one Essential Caregiver per resident permitted during lockdown. These individuals must provide proof of a negative COVID test, taken within one week of any visit to the home.
Additional preventive measures that have been in place at the GPL since the beginning of the pandemic will also continue, including:
· Mandatory use by staff of appropriate personal protective equipment at all times and strict adherence to rigorous hand hygiene practices;
· Cohorting residents in their own Resident Home Area;
· Isolation of any resident experiencing the onset of symptoms, and the implementation of contact precautions for staff;
· Enhanced environmental cleaning protocols;
· Quarantine protocols for packages for residents.
