Dr. Paul Roumeliotis, chief medical officer for the Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU) confirmed the most recent deaths at the long-term care facility during his regular media teleconference.

“This is a tragedy,” said Dr. Roumeliotis. “My heart goes out to the families and the others at the home.”

The COVID-19 death toll for the EOHU region is now eight, and all of them at the Plantagenet nursing home. Doctors and nurses from the Hawkesbury & District General Hospital have gone to Pinecrest to aid staff there with infection control and other needs.

“I am very worried about Pinecrest,” said Dr. Roumeliotis, noting that many of the nursing home’s elderly residents are frail and several suffer from various forms of dementia. “We are continuing to monitor the situation.”

Details on the age and gender of the six latest victims of COVID-19 are not available at present.

Pinecrest is one of three long-term care facilities in the EOHU region suffering from COVID-19 outbreaks. The Plantagenet facility has 39 confirmed cases now, including 32 residents who tested positive for the disease, and 7 staff, who are now in self-isolation. The Woodland care home in Long Sault has two cases of COVID-19 confirmed.

St. Joseph’s Continuing Care Centre in Cornwall is the  latest addition to the list of outbreaks in the EOHU area. One staff member is now in self-isolation after testing positive for COVID-19.  

The total number of COVID-19 cases for the Five Counties and City of Cornwall areas now total 132, including those at the long-term care homes. The majority of COVID-19 cases for the region are classed as “community transmission”, which means direct contact between individuals.

Almost half of these cases are also classed as “resolved”, which means the individuals who tested positive for the disease no longer show any symptoms following their 14-day isolation periods. These people are now free of COVID-19.