COVID-19 outbreaks at Nanaimo hospital, care home declared over

The exterior of the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital is seen. (CTV News)

Victoria — Two COVID-19 outbreaks in the Mid-Island have been declared over, Island Health announced Thursday.

The outbreaks were located at Chartwell Malaspina Care Residence and the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital (NRGH).

The outbreak at Chartwell Malaspina was declared more than one month ago on Dec. 27. The virus spread to a total of seven residents and two staff members during that time, and claimed the lives of two residents.

Now that the outbreak has been declared over, social visits are being permitted again, as well as admissions and transfers to the facility. Within the care home, congregate dining has also been allowed to restart with regular COVID-19 safety protocols in place.

The outbreak at NRGH was first declared on Jan. 23. In total, two staff members and one patient tested positive for COVID-19 due to the outbreak.

Island Health says the outbreak was restricted to the east wing of the fourth floor and no other areas of the hospital have been affected.

“Staff are to be commended for their diligent work in limiting transmission and continuing to provide excellent care during challenging circumstances,” said Island Health in a release Thursday. “With the outbreak declared over, normal operations will resume on the unit.”

Now that the two Nanaimo outbreaks have come to an end, there are currently no active health-care outbreaks on Vancouver Island.

“We thank the community for their ongoing support,” said Island Health.