Shared Health says changes are being made to the way they share information on lab reporting and screening sites as updates will now be reported on a weekly basis.

Chief Nursing officer Lanette Siragusa announced the changes.

“Instead, what we’ll do is change to the evolving needs of this pandemic,” she says, “and make sure that, in the interest of transparency, providing the information that you need as planning progresses.”

Siragusa shared the ongoing concern surrounding positively identified infected health-care workers.

“There’s been a lot of understandable interest in how many health care workers in Manitoba have tested positive for COVID-19 and today I’m going to begin and I’m going to keep on going providing information as we receive it.”

“14 of the 194 who have tested positive for the virus do work in health care,” she says.  “Some of these tests are related to travel and I can report that there are zero health care workers who have COVID-19 in Northern Regional Health Authority, Southern Health Sante Sud, and Prairie Mountain Health at this time.”

“There are also 12 health care workers who work in Winnipeg, and two who work in the Interlake Eastern Health Authority.” 

Siragusa adds these 2 include the workers from the Selkirk Regional Health Centre which was mentioned earlier this week, as well as the case at the Betel (Personal Care) Home in Gimli which is still under investigation as a presumptive positive.

Siragusa says they appreciate the interest of the public and the media on these specific cases but want to emphasize that there will be occasions where information has not yet reached Dr. Roussin or herself when they update Manitobans each day.

“It’s important to understand that at the moment positive cases identified in a health care setting, whether it’s a patient or a health care worker work begins right away to establish contact tracing to provide clear direction to those who may have been in close contact with those positive cases and to ensure that the environment is appropriately disinfected.”

“Family notifications and staff notifications are also completed as soon as possible and the Occupational and Environmental Safety Health (OESH) and the Infection Prevention and Control professionals are involved from the first moment a positive case is identified.”

“This is a robust and comprehensive response, and understandably the number one focus in each health care environment, they’re taking the appropriate steps as fast as they can.”

Siragusa adds this means there will be times when rumors or word-of-mouth sharing will be out in the public before their offices can confirm a positive case.

“Manitobans can be reassured that the process is in place as swiftly and as responsive, and it’s working.”