Number of Kelowna care homes with a COVID-19 outbreak rises to seven

Another Kelowna, B.C., senior’s facility is reporting a COVID-19 outbreak.

On Thursday, Interior Health added Spring Valley Care Centre to the list of care homes in Kelowna to have an outbreak. It thus far has four cases: three residents and one staff member.

That raises the number of Central Okanagan facilities with COVID-19 outbreaks to seven.

Brookhaven Care Centre in West Kelowna has 30 cases, 10 residents and 20 staff, with two deaths connected to the outbreak.

Cottonwoods Care Centre long-term care in Kelowna has 30 cases, up three from Wednesday, with 19 residents and 11 staff now with COVID-19. There are three deaths connected to the outbreak.

4:53 Health minister says mandatory vaccines on long term care are ‘necessary step’

Hawthorn Park assisted/independent living centre in Kelowna has five cases, the same as earlier reported, with one resident and four staff.

David Lloyd Jones long-term care in Kelowna has had one more case diagnosed overnight for a total of 50 COVID-19 cases, 38 residents and 12 staff, with five deaths connected to the outbreak.

Village at Mill Creek assisted living/independent living in Kelowna has stayed stable with three cases, two residents and one staff.

Sun Pointe Village assisted living/independent living centre in Kelowna has seen two more cases and there are now five resident COVID-19 cases.

With the Central Okanagan seeing the most care home outbreaks in the province right now, Global Okanagan spoke with Interior Health to find out what has been going on within these facilities.

“The vast majority of care home residents are vaccinated, but what we are seeing is lagging rates with care-home staff,” said Dr. Carol Fenton, an Interior Health medical officer told Global B.C. Wednesday.  

2:02 “We want to avoid another outbreak like this if possible” Review into Interior Health’s deadliest long term care outbreak to take place

Staff vaccination rates are not available according to Interior Health, but recently the province announced it will mandate that all health-care workers at care homes will be fully vaccinated.

“Public health is taking an important step to address recent breakthrough COVID-19 cases in long-term care facilities, making it mandatory for all health-care workers in care homes to be fully vaccinated from COVID-19 by Oct. 12,” the Ministry of Health announced on Aug. 12.

Another 724 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded in B.C. on Thursday, along with two additional deaths.

Of the new cases, 271 were in the Interior Health region, 142 cases were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 185 were in the Fraser Health region, 64 were in Island Health and 62 were in Northern Health.