Delta hospital no longer admitting new patients after 7 die since Sept. 16 in COVID-19 outbreak 

Seven patients have died at Delta Hospital due to COVID-19 since an outbreak was declared Sept. 16 prompting the hospital to no longer admit new patients. 

However, the emergency department remains open for urgent care and all scheduled surgeries at the hospital will go ahead, Fraser Health said Monday.

"The emergency room is open and can provide usual emergency department care. But if a patient requires additional care beyond the emergency department and needs to come into hospital overnight or for a number of days, those patients will be transported to a different hospital," said Dr. Elizabeth Brodkin, the interim chief medical health officer and vice-president, population health with Fraser Health. 

Patients will be taken to a a hospital within the Fraser Health network.

A total of 18 patients have tested positive for COVID-19 at the Delta Hospital, along with 17 staff. 

Brodkin said some of the staff cases are a result of community exposure rather than from their place of work, whereas all the patients acquired the infection at the hospital.

The outbreak is contained to the second floor which is a large medicine unit, the health authority said.

"We appreciate that this has been a very difficult time for for everyone, for the patients themselves who have become sick and their families and acknowledged that it has been a tough go," said Brodkin.

The health authority says enhanced infection prevention and control measures introduced at the onset of the outbreak continue to be in place. 

At the daily COVID briefing on Monday, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said reduced staffing is another reason to close admissions.

"There's been quite a lot of health care workers who've been exposed and many of them as well, who are now off and self isolating because of those exposures," she said. "So the emergency department is open, but the hospital is closed for admissions right now." 

Outbreak at Surrey Memorial Hospital

Fraser Health is also dealing with an outbreak at Surrey Memorial Hospital, after evidence of transmission in a medicine unit, according to a news release sent out Friday morning.

The health authority said the outbreak is limited to one unit, which is temporarily closed to admissions.

It said it has notified all patients in the affected unit about the outbreak and has informed the families of patients who are unable to communicate with their loved ones.

An outbreak was previously declared at the hospital's nephrology unit in early September.

11 long-term care outbreaks

The health authority also announced an additional outbreak at a long-term care home in South Surrey on Monday. 

A staff member at Chartwell Crescent Gardens in South Surrey has tested positive for COVID-19. The staff member is currently in self-isolation at home. 

"We're working very closely with the site to proactively implement a number of enhanced infection prevention control measures. We also have the rapid response team that's been deployed to work with the site," said Brodkin.

In total, 11 long-term care and assisted living facilities in the Fraser Health region are dealing with an outbreak. 

"We know that this continues to be a difficult time for everyone as we respond to COVID-19. For families that have their loved ones in long-term care, our hospitals and our teams are working hard to provide the necessary care to protect our patients," said Brodkin.