Twelve people have died in a COVID-19 outbreak at a hospital in London, Ont., that has seen dozens of staff and patients sickened.
As of Friday, the outbreak at University Hospital, which began on Nov. 10, was tied to 48 cases among staff and 64 in patients.
"We are doing everything in our power to keep this number from growing but trying to keep the pandemic out of a hospital is a challenge," said Dr. Paul Woods, president of the London Health Sciences Centre, which oversees the hospital.
He said the hospital remains open and safe for emergencies, but has been redirecting some admissions to another facility.
The outbreak began in a single unit and has since spread to five other parts of the hospital.
That disruption could last through December, hospital officials said.
The network has made several measures to control the growing outbreak at the hospital.
It has limited movement of staff and patients between different parts of the hospital and directing staff to "work-quarantine" -- meaning they can't have social interactions outside of work.
The health network has also reduced activity at the hospital to only urgent and emergent services.
It said it has continued to work with Middlesex-London Health Unit to implement measures as part of its response to limit transmission.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 4, 2020.
This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
The Canadian Press
