43 COVID-19 cases identified at Sandilands

Information provided by health authorities show that there have been 43 cases of COVID-19 at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre (SRC) in Fox Hill.

All of the cases and their contacts were identified between July 1 and August 23.

Earlier this month, officials confirmed that 23 patients on the Male Ward at SRC tested positive for COVID-19 after a staff member, who worked across three wards of the institution, tested positive.

Eighty contacts of the cases were identified, according to the Ministry of Health.

The data does not show that any of the contacts contracted COVID-19.

Five contacts of case 729 had a minimal risk level of COVID exposure.

Three high-risk contacts, one medium-risk and one minimal-risk were identified for case 735.

All three contacts of case 728 had minimal COVID exposure.

Three contacts with minimal-risk exposure were identified for case 998.

Two contacts with high-risk exposure and one with medium-risk were identified for case 1,011.

Two contacts with high-risk exposure were identified for case 991.

One minimal-risk contact was identified for case 732. Health officials also identified three high-risk contacts for that same case.

Five high-risk contacts and one minimal-risk contact were identified for case 992.

Seven high-risk contacts were linked to case 827 and two high-risk contacts were identified for case 734.

Two high-risk contacts, three medium-risk and one minimal-risk were identified for case 731.

One high-risk contact was identified for case 749. A medium-risk contact was also identified for case 749.

A minimal-risk contact was linked to case 999 and a high-risk contact was identified for case 742.

The case numbers were illegible for five cases.

Two high-risk contacts, two medium-risk and four minimal-risk contacts were identified for those cases.

No contacts were identified for 22 cases.

Although case 1,183 did not directly stem from SRC, it was still included among the cases in the cluster.

Four high-risk cases were linked to that case.

The public healthcare system has been plagued by a recent surge in cases among staff and patients during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in The Bahamas.

SRC has been at the center of that after authorities confirmed nearly two dozen cases at the facility. 

The facility is tied with Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) for the highest number of COVID cases among healthcare workers.

Both facilities had 18 as of August 18, according to figures from the Ministry of Health.

On August 21, a nurse who worked on the Male Ward at SRC died after contracting the virus.

She was the first nurse to die as a result of COVID-19 in The Bahamas.

source https://thenassauguardian.com/43-covid-19-cases-identified-at-sandilands/