COVID-19 outbreak in unit at Vancouver hospital

Five patients and two staff members in one unit at Vancouver General Hospital have tested positive for COVID-19, prompting health officials to declare an outbreak in that section of the hospital.

Vancouver Coastal Health says inpatient unit T-10-C in the hospital's Jim Pattison Pavilion is now closed to new admissions and transfers.

Visits to the unit, on the tenth floor of the hospital's highrise tower, have been suspended except for end-of-life compassionate visits.

The health authority says strict infection prevention and control protocols have been implemented.

Those include enhanced cleaning and disinfection of all frequently touched surfaces in the unit and self-monitoring or self-isolation of staff and physicians as part of the contact tracing process.

Coastal health says the rest of the hospital, including the emergency room, are open and operating as usual.