A new case of COVID-19 presented at the hospital with symptoms on the weekend, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to date in Haliburton County to 8.
Dr. Norm Bottum says the individual was stable so they were sent home.
He says because it’s a reportable disease, Public Health has a mandate to follow those individuals, and the person becomes part of the “circle of care”.
He says they would have been informed when they had their swab, that because they have symptoms, they should go home and isolate. And if the swab comes back positive, Public Health will advise the patient to stay in isolation for a minimum of 14 days.
Public Health will “check-in regularly during that time to determine when it’s safe for them to go back out and resume normal activities.”
Dr. Bottum says Public Health will also determine contact tracing for this person. If they live with a family, that family will be under observation for a period of time as well. Public health will also find out if there has been any other close contacts.
Dr. B says if everyone is wearing a mask in public, then we know that “everyone is doing their best to minimize the spread of the virus”.