Three more residents at the Chartwell Malaspina Residence long-term care home in Nanaimo have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number to five.
Island Health said the cases were detected through mass testing it did on Dec. 28. It also said all the affected residents are located in one unit on the first floor of the facility. The residents who tested positive are isolating in their rooms.
The health authority declared an outbreak at the long-term care home on Dec. 27, when a resident tested positive for the virus, followed by a second the next day.
Island Health said all residents and staff will be tested for COVID-19 and its public health team will be on-site to speed up and support the process.
Care home staff are working with Island Health to carry out contact tracing to determine how the virus was brought into the facility.
Staff and resident movement in the facility has been restricted and cleaning measures have been enhanced, according to Island Health.
