Alberta coronavirus cases jump to 19, one patient visited Edmonton hospital before testing positive

In an update Wednesday afternoon, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health said that the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the province is now 19.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw said at a news conference that five new cases have been confirmed, but all are tied to individuals who had recently travelled.

“At the moment there is no evidence of community spread in the province. All of our cases have been travel-related,” said Hinshaw.

One of the confirmed cases is a man in his 30s in Edmonton who returned from international travel and started experiencing symptoms a number of days after he returned. He visited Misericordia Community Hospital on March 6 and 7 for an unrelated, previously scheduled treatment. He then tested positive for COVID-19 on March 9.

Staff and patients who may have been exposed at the hospital are being directly contacted by public health officials. There is no risk to patients or staff at the hospital at this time, said the province in a news release.

“Public Health is working with Occupational Health and Safety and Infection Prevention Control at that site to make sure that they identify who might be at risk of having been exposed, and then making sure that those individuals know to self-isolate for 14 days,” Hinshaw said Wednesday.

Source: Read Full Article