Covid-19 outbreak at Norman Wells long-term care facility

The NWT’s chief public health officer on Wednesday declared a Covid-19 outbreak at Norman Wells’ long-term care facility, saying two cases were connected.

Dr Kami Kandola said she defined an outbreak in a long-term care facility as any instance in which even one person living or working in the facility develops Covid-19.

The territory’s health authority already required that all staff and visitors wear masks at such facilities and be screened on entry, Dr Kandola said. Numbers of visitors are limited.

“The facility has been closed to visitors since August 15, 2021 because of community transmission in the region,” read a statement from Kandola’s office on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, that statement continued, Kandola’s office and the health authority had “initiated further outbreak response measures including site-wide testing for staff and residents and enhanced environmental cleaning.”

The condition of the two people to have contracted Covid-19 in connection with the facility was not given.

So far, there are 70 cases connected to the Sahtu outbreak and four considered separate. The majority are in Fort Good Hope, the site of a superspreader hand games tournament from August 5-9, with several in surrounding communities and 12 in Yellowknife.

Those numbers are set to be updated later on Wednesday.