A health-care worker at the St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital (STEGH) has contracted COVID-19 through community transmission of the virus.
The hospital employee was diagnosed on Monday and is self-isolating at home.
The unidentified individual wore all of the appropriate personal protective equipment while working at the hospital prior to their diagnosis, STEGH officials said in a statement issued Tuesday.
Southwestern Public Health, the local health unit for Oxford and Elgin counties, and the hospital are investigating the case and working to contact all staff and patients who were in close contact with the infected worker. The hospital has given no indication as to what position the employee holds at the facility, but reassures all appropriate measures have been implemented to mitigate the potential spread of the virus.
"We are starting to see an increase in community transmissions of COVID-19. As a result, cases among health care workers are not unexpected in the region,” said Robert Biron, president and CEO of the hospital. “Keeping our patients and staff safe is our first priority, and our team acted quickly and decisively to address the situation."
The St. Thomas hospital employee is the most recent health-care worker in the region to contract the virus. Last month, a health-care worker in Strathroy and another at the London Health Sciences Centre tested positive for COVID-19.
To date, there have been 36 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported by Southwestern Public Health. Three people confirmed to have the virus in the area have died, while six others have fully recovered.
