Residents at CHSLD Herron in isolation after staff member tests positive for COVID-19
Long-term care home was hit hard by first wave of pandemic, with at least 38 dead in less than a month
Residents at a long-term care home in Montreal's West Island, where at least 38 people died in the spring, are once again in preventive isolation after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19.
The regional health authority — the CIUSSS de l'Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal — said staff at CHSLD Herron learned of the positive case Saturday morning and quickly isolated and tested all patients and employees who had been in contact with them.
"All family members of the residents have been contacted by phone by our care teams," the health authority said in an email.
"They are working closely with public health authorities."
Between March 26 and April 16, nearly forty Herron residents died amid a devastating outbreak of COVID-19. Most of the staff were unable to work, either because they were infected or were themselves in isolation, leaving residents neglected.
A report released Wednesday concluded "organizational negligence" was a factor in the deaths.
There were only three employees caring for 133 residents at Herron when, on March 29, health authorities dispatched additional workers to help, according to the report.
The regional health authority took over management of the privately run facility on April 7.
