Fully immunized woman dies from COVID-19 in Kitchener long-term care home
A woman in her 90s living in a Kitchener long-term care home has died from COVID-19, marking the first related death in a fully immunized person in Waterloo Region.
On Sunday, health officials said the Village of Winston Park long-term care home is currently going through a COVID-19 outbreak.
There are nine COVID-19 cases at the home, including five residents and four staff members infected with the virus.
“I would like to express my deepest sympathy to this individual’s family at this sad time,” said Dr. Rabia Bana, Associate Medical Officer of Health for the Region of Waterloo in a news release. “Death is a very rare outcome in fully immunized individuals."
Dr. Bana adds that there are usually a lot of other factors at play when it comes to these kinds of death, like age, baseline health status, and comorbidities.
In an online update on Friday from Schlegel Villages, which runs a number of retirement and long-term care homes, they said a resident of Winston Park who had tested positive for COVID-19 passed away.
"This resident had only shown mild symptoms but, as we have seen through the course of the pandemic, the virus can change quickly and our deepest condolences are with loved ones and team members facing this loss today," the statement reads in part.
On Monday, the home's general manager, Brad Lawrence, said 98 per cent of residents have received their second dose and 89 per cent of staff have received a second dose.
Public health said Monday they suspect all the COVID-19 cases at the home are the Delta variant.
"We know that one of the cases [in the outbreak] is a Delta variant case, so we expect that the remaining and any additional cases would also be Delta variant," said Dr. Bana.
They add that Waterloo Region residents should remain vigilant in the fight against COVID-19.
"Members of the public need to continue to follow public health guidance and get immunized as soon as possible," Dr. Bana said. "Vaccines along with public health measures are still our best protection against COVID-19 and the Delta variant which is circulating in our community.”
Public Health says they are currently working with the LTC facility to manage the outbreak, as residents of these homes are more vulnerable to severe outcomes of COVID-19.
With reporting from CTV Kitchener's Heather Senoran
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.