Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional information from Alberta Health Services
The province is reporting there are 'small' COVID-19 outbreaks at two Edmonton-area hospitals.
On Monday afternoon, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, said there are a "small number of cases" at the Sturgeon Community Hospital in St. Albert that appear to be linked to each other. An exact number for how many cases are involved in the outbreak was not immediately available.
Another case identified at the Edmonton General has been linked to the outbreak at the Sturgeon as a result of a patient transfer.
In response to follow-up questions from the St. Albert Gazette, AHS said in an email the patient was transferred from the Sturgeon to the Edmonton General Hospital's restorative/sub-acute unit on April 21.
AHS stated the case is considered an outbreak at the Sturgeon because the individual may have acquired COVID-19 while they were in the hospital. The case is being investigated.
"We have had no related cases to date. Following contact tracing there have been no additional patient infections identified," stated Kerry Williamson, executive director of issues management for AHS' communications department, in an email.
"There is no increased risk to patients coming to our hospitals. Our units continue to be a safe and appropriate place to receive care."
The guidelines for COVID-19 outbreaks mean there are restrictions in place, including restrictions on transfers and new admissions, as well as additional environmental cleaning.
Williamson said there are also enhanced screening and surveillance for all health care workers, patients and support people.
“Numbers may change over the coming days as more is understood about these situations,” Hinshaw said.
She also said it is good they caught the cases early so now AHS can take the proper steps to limit further infections.
“Precautionary steps are taken when even a single case is identified in an acute care facility,” Hinshsaw said.
The cases are limited to a single unit and not spread throughout the site.
The Sturgeon was one of two hospitals with a “small” outbreak, along with the Royal Alexandra hospital in Edmonton. The two outbreaks are not connected.
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“Stringent processes are in place to limit the spread and hospitals remain safe thanks to the diligent efforts of healthcare workers.”
As of Monday, there have been 30 cases of COVID-19 in St. Albert, with six being active and the remaining 24 people having recovered. Previously, the city had been sitting at 27 cases for around a week.
There have been 12 cases of COVID-19 in Sturgeon County, with two active and 10 recovered.
There have been 34 cases, 11 active, of COVID-19 reported in Rocky View County and 16 cases, four active, reported in the Cochrane-Springbank region.
Across Alberta, there have been a total of 4,696 COVID-19 diagnoses, with 216 cases being diagnosed overnight. In all, 1,664 people have recovered.
There are currently 87 people hospitalized with COVID-19, and 20 of them are in the ICU.
Since yesterday, two additional people have died of COVID-19, bringing the total number of deaths in the province to 75.
In Calgary, the province has found four cases of COVID-19 among individuals experiencing homelessness over the weekend. Three were discovered at Calgary’s drop-in centre, while an additional case was found at Calgary’s Salvation Army location. Some 1,000 Calgarians experiencing homelessness who have had symptoms of COVID-19 have been tested.
An outbreak has also been reported at Bearspaw First Nation, which has had 14 cases.
