Eight residents and six staff at the Clifton Manor long-term care facility in Calgary have now tested positive for COVID-19, according to The Brenda Strafford Foundation, which owns and operates the site.
Residents’ families were advised on Monday that more positive cases were now confirmed at the location. On April 11, when there were a total of five cases of COVID-19 at the manor, a notice was posted on the foundation’s website that said it was anticipating more.
“Please be assured that we have responded quickly, and we are making our best effort to prevent further occurrences by containing the spread of the virus,” said the statement from the foundation’s CEO Mike Conroy.
“However, the reality is that given the incubation period of the virus, more positive cases can likely be expected.”
Conroy told Global News on Monday that all eight residents reside in the same unit and they have all been relocated to an isolation ward for treatment and care. None require ventilators or have been moved to hospitals. He said 50 additional staff members have been hired to work at Clifton Manor.
The initial source of the infection has not yet been determined.
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The Brenda Strafford Foundation is now working with Alberta Health Services’ to investigate the source of the infection and undertake contact tracing for anyone that might have had exposure to these residents.
Conroy said many precautions are being taken at Clifton Manor. Residents are tested at the first sign of any symptom and are immediately quarantined in their room.
“We put in aggressive measures in advance of provincial measures,” said Conroy, referring to not allowing staff to work at multiple care facilities and restricting visitors to the centres.
In addition, staff who are caring for or providing services such as meals to residents quarantined in their room wear full personal protective equipment.
David Cowling has a brother who is a resident at Clifton Manor. He would like to see testing for COVID-19 expanded to all staff and residents, even those who are not showing symptoms.
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“The only answer really that is going to solve this problem is adequate testing. I appreciate the testing resources are limited I understand that,” Cowling said.
“But this is where the most vulnerable people are and that’s where almost all of our resources should be placed. Those are the people who are at risk of dying.”
Conroy said that The Brenda Strafford Foundation put in a request to the province last week that all staff and residents be tested, but was informed that was not provincial policy at the time.
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