Toronto hospital worker with no links to Mexico recovering from swine flu

A staff member at Toronto's Princess Margaret Hospital is confirmed to have come down with swine flu, leading health officials to warn the flu is becoming "more widespread." 

The woman is said to be recovering at home from a mild case of H1N1 influenza.

The news came as seven new cases of swine flu were detected in Ontario, bringing the provincial total to 56. Among the new cases, all of which are said to be mild, six were detected in the Toronto area, while one was confirmed in Sudbury.

One of the new cases involves a three-year-old child.

Hospital worker had no ties to Mexico

Princess Margaret's chief executive said in a memo to employees that the infected staff member had no ties to Mexico, where 1,112 cases of swine flu have been confirmed and 42 people have died.

"Our … colleague had no link to Mexico, which suggests the H1N1 virus is becoming more widespread in the community," Dr. Bob Bell wrote.

The hospital is not releasing any details of the job the worker performs, but says she did not have direct contact with patients. 

"That individual was ill and is now at home recovering," said Princess Margaret spokeswoman Gillian Howard. "It does take some time for the swabs to come back, so … the case is confirmed." 

The hospital also says it wants to assure patients that it's safe to come in for appointments.

"If they are a patient at the hospital they should come in for their treatment.  And we are doing everything that we can to make sure that … staff members don't come in ill.

"But clearly people who are coming for treatment for cancer and who have some of these symptoms, they need to come and be assessed," Howard said. 

Princess Margaret Hospital is recognized as one of the world's top cancer care and research institutions. 

Members of Princess Margaret's infection prevention and control staff have tried to trace every contact the worker had in the hospital. But so far, it's not clear how the employee contracted the flu. 

"One of the messages that we have been communicating to our other staff is that there wasn't a clear travel history, or history of contact with Mexico.

"So this suggests, as we've all been expecting might happen over time, that the flu — this particular flu virus — might be more widespread in the community," said Dr. Susy Hota, an infectious disease specialist with the University Health Network.

The hospital says the number of people the employee came into contact with is less than 20.