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2 residents in London, Ont., retirement home test positive for COVID-19

Residents at a long-term care home in London, Ont., have tested positive for COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Grand Wood Park Retirement Residence is reporting that two of its residents have tested positive for COVID-19.

Dr. Rhonda Collins, chief medical officer for Revera Inc., which operates the residence, said in a statement that the residents at the London, Ont., home are in isolation and “full outbreak protocols” have been implemented.

No additional details were provided about the two residents, but Collins said the cases were confirmed on Monday, March 30.

“All individuals who may have come into contact with the residents are being closely monitored for symptoms and will be isolated if they exhibit symptoms; the residence is being disinfected and deep-cleaned using a Clorox 360 disinfectant,” Collins said.

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“Overall, since the pandemic was declared, residents and employees of the home have been practising strict pandemic protocols. We have undertaken enhanced cleaning of all our homes, including Grand Wood Park Retirement Residence, and this will continue. This includes bringing in extra housekeeping staff to do more frequent cleaning, especially in high-touch areas like doorknobs, handrails, common areas, staff rooms and seating areas.”

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Collins added that recreation programming has been cancelled; staff instead now do one-on-one activities with residents. A new program has also been introduced that aims to provide updates to loved ones of residents every few days.

“Revera continues to do everything we can to keep our residents and employees safe as we work to control and prevent the spread of COVID-19 at our long-term care homes and retirement residences,” said Collins.

The spread of the novel coronavirus within long-term care and retirement homes has been of particular concern, as the elderly are at increased risk of serious complications from the virus. As of March 31, at least a dozen residents of Pinecrest Nursing Home in Bobcaygeon have died due to COVID-19 complications.

In British Columbia, 12 seniors homes had declared outbreaks of COVID-19 by March 27. While most had been limited to one or two people, North Vancouver’s Lynn Valley Care Centre had at least 46 residents and 24 staff test positive, while Vancouver’s Haro Park Centre had at least 30 residents and 28 staff test positive.

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Click to play video: 'How to care for the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic'
How to care for the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic

— With files from Global News’ Simon Little and Greg Davis

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