In collaboration with Public Health, the Oak Home Area has declared a Respiratory Outbreak with five (5) residents showing symptoms such as runny nose, nasal congestion, and/or fever. Family members of those residents affected have been notified. We are currently waiting on test results from Public Health.

The following infection control measures are to be implemented or continued at this time:

• Masks and eye protection to be worn in the Oak Home Area
• Residents are to remain in the unit at this time to reduce the risk of spread
• *If residents insist on leaving the unit, please assist them with masking or a visor and encourage outdoor visiting.
• Twice daily respiratory symptom screening on Oak
• Immediate isolation of any residents with new symptom onset
• Cohorting of staff, when possible.
• Cohorting of residents and only small group activities on the unit for unaffected residents. Isolated residents to receive one-to-one activities.
• Twice daily high-touch surface cleaning
• Increased hand hygiene and PPE audits on the unit.
• Limit of two (2) essential caregivers at a time
• No General Visiting to Oak home area

We will continue to provide updates as we move through the outbreak.

If you have any questions please contact John Iskander, IPAC Lead at ext. 4752

Monthly Family Update Meeting

When: Wednesday, March 20, 2024, 6:30 p.m.
Where: Join Zoom Meeting Link (below), 6:30 p.m.

Please note: meetings will only be virtual moving forward

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82942296115?pwd=Rks4eDY3UVFSM1ZTeXFYOXAvTDhhZz09

Meeting ID: 829 4229 6115

Passcode: 656014

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kL9RPl8mM

Join us for the family update meeting using the link above.

This month we will have Natasha Thompson and Andrea Groomes to speak about Palliative Care at the Pines.

Public Health has announced that the enhanced surveillance for Maple and Birch is now over as of March 12, 2024. We kindly request you screen yourself before visiting the home, and if you feel unwell, please refrain from visiting until you have fully recovered. We appreciate your cooperation.

Please reach out to Andrea, Social Worker, if you are interested in signing up! andrea.groomes@muskok.on.ca

Thank you to those who were able to participate in our 2023 Resident & Family Engagement Survey. Our team has reviewed the feedback and would like to ask some more questions to assist with guiding our quality improvement annual plan in the home. We appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. It is very important to us. Please click on the link below to the short survey.

https://www.engagemuskoka.ca/embeds/projects/20047/survey-tools/45360

Infection Control Measures at this time:

• Symptomatic residents are isolated at this time
• Masks are to be worn in the Maple and Birch Home Areas
• Enhanced cleaning and disinfecting

The Ministry of Long-Term Care (MLTC) has been working closely with the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health (OCMOH) to monitor and assess respiratory illness in the community and LTCHs, including reassessing enhanced masking measures currently in place in LTCHs.

Recent trends have shown continued decreases in the community-level transmission of COVID-19, flu, and RSV, as well as decreases in outbreaks in LTCHs, with lower risk of severe illness and hospitalization amongst residents, and increased vaccination rates. While outbreaks can still be expected, we anticipate entering a lower-risk period of respiratory illness than we have experienced over the past three months.

Based on the recent trends and projections, and the advice of OCMOH, MLTC is ending the enhanced masking measures effective immediately.

As required in the Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) Standard and the updated MLTC COVID-19 guidance document, masking in non-outbreak situations in LTCHs continues to be:

• Required for staff, based on a point-of-care risk assessment before every resident interaction, and based on the return-to-work protocols;
• Staff may consider wearing a mask during prolonged direct resident care defined as one-on-one within two metres of an individual for fifteen minutes or longer; and
• Recommended for visitors and caregivers, but not required.