The Grey Bruce Health Unit is working with Queen of Hearts Nursery School to address a probable case of COVID-19 associated with a cohort at the centre in Owen Sound.

A probable case is defined as direct link with a positive case, symptomatic and has not been tested.

While there is a person with probable COVID-19 associated with a cohort at this childcare centre, our assessment, to date, indicates that transmission did not take place within the childcare centre environment. Currently there are no outbreaks (i.e. evidence of transmission from person to person) in any schools or childcare centres in Grey Bruce.

Public Health is the lead in all outbreaks and case management. Public Health will contact you if you have had close contact with someone who has COVID-19, based on a thorough risk assessment completed only by Public Health.

Determining who has had close contact is a decision that can only be made by Public Health. Anyone at heightened risk of COVID-19 transmission due to close contact to a person with COVID-19 will be contacted by Public Health within 24 hours of the investigation.

Those NOT contacted by Public Health need not take any additional steps including asymptomatic testing.

The Grey Bruce Health Unit will direct those considered at risk regarding testing requirements and recommendations (e.g., timing). There is no value in anyone being tested before they are notified and instructed to do so by Public Health. Results of early testing are unreliable and place individuals at risk of more testing than is required.

In this situation, the person with COVID-19 has been contacted directly by our COVID-19 Case and Contact Management Team. We are working with the individual and the childcare centre to identify others, both in and out of the childcare centre environment, who may have been exposed and to determine their risk level.

All contact tracing and determination of individual and community risk is made by Public Health. This is true of all cases, whether in childcare centres, schools, workplaces or the community. A health care provider or childcare official cannot make this decision.

source: media release, Grey Bruce Health Unit