FORT FRANCES — Officials are investigating what they are calling a "suspect" COVID-19 outbreak at La Verendrye General Hospital in Fort Frances.
The announcement was made Saturday by the Northwestern Health Unit and Riverside Health Care, which operates the hospital.
They said the investigation was initiated as the result of one patient testing positive for the virus.
Additional precautions are being implemented to further reduce the risk of spread.
The hospital was already testing staff twice a week.
Now, all inpatients are being tested for COVID-19.
New restrictions also permit only one visitor or caregiver for critically ill, pediatric and emergency patients, and two visitors or caregivers at a time for palliative patients.
There's been an increase in COVID-19 infections across the Rainy River district and the rest of the Northwestern Health Unit's service area due to the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
