Virus claims St. Amant client

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This article was published 20/12/2020 (1897 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The first individual cared for by St. Amant services for people living with developmental disabilities or autism has died from COVID-19 in Winnipeg.

The province reported on Sunday that a man in his 30s connected to an outbreak at St. Amant was among Manitoba’s latest virus victims.

The man died after spending the past few weeks in hospital, according to a public release from St. Amant’s President and CEO John Leggat.

“It is with a heavy heart that I’m sharing the sad news of our first death in a person supported in Health & Transition Services related to COVID-19,” Leggat wrote.

The St. Amant-linked death was one of 13 total deaths reported by the province on Sunday along with 229 new cases identified. There are now 569 Manitobans who have lost their lives to COVID-19.

Friday, the head of St. Amant’s health and transition services team, Sarah Mankelow, expressed some optimism in a public update because there had been no new cases linked to St. Amant identified in the preceding week. Both staff and people served by St. Amant have been infected in the outbreak that began in September.

“We won’t be able to declare our outbreak over until later in January, however, we are feeling more comfortable now given the last week of no new cases,” Mankelow wrote.

Mankelow’s update also said St. Amant in-person visits were likely to resume by Christmas Eve. Some St. Amant staff have been among those included in the first round of COVID-19 vaccinations.

The province also announced Sunday that they’re continuing to take calls from eligible health-care workers who qualify for the first round of vaccine doses. The province said approximately 300 of the 900 doses remain available.

The province expanded the eligibility criteria to include workers who work directly with patients and meet at least one of the following criteria: work in critical care units, born on or before Dec. 31, 1980; work in long-term care facilities, born on or before Dec. 31, 1962; work in acute care facilities, born on or before Dec. 31, 1960; or workers assigned to COVID-19 immunization clinics.

In addition to the death linked to the St. Amant outbreak, four of the other 13 deaths were linked to outbreaks at personal care homes. One was connected to an outbreak at the Health Sciences Centre in the GA3 unit.

Sunday’s announcement of 229 new cases being identified in the province was the lowest caseload reported since mid-November. Of the 229 cases, 130 were identified in Winnipeg; 16 in the Interlake-Eastern health region; 27 cases in the Northern health region; 17 in the Prairie Mountain Health region; and 39 cases in the Southern Health health region.

Provincial data shows 2,261 tests were completed on Saturday. Test positivity sits at 12.2 per cent provincially and 11.4 per cent in Winnipeg. The data shows there are 5,749 active cases of COVID-19 and 16,541 individuals who have recovered from the virus.

There are 302 people hospitalized with COVID-19, including 43 people in intensive care. The number of people in intensive care does not include patients who have been deemed to no longer be contagious but may still require care.

sarah.lawrynuik@freepress.mb.ca