Rise in coronavirus cases in Hamilton shelter system raises concerns
Mission Services is working with public health to curb spread of COVID-19 after a man staying at its downtown Hamilton shelter tested positive for the virus.
Meanwhile, a staff person at a temporary overflow shelter operated by Good Shepherd on Main Street East also has coronavirus.
These cases, and an increase over the past month, are concerning, says a doctor who's part of an ongoing effort to screen shelter residents and staff for COVID-19.
I'd say I'm feeling worried," Dr. Tim O'Shea, a member of the Hamilton Social Medicine Response Team, said Friday.
With the increase in cases, more people who are homeless are opting not to stay in shelters out of fear, O'Shea noted.
Moreover, if a person stayed at a shelter during an outbreak, they're not permitted to stay in others, he added.
So that's led to an increase in the number of people that have been sleeping outside or in very precarious situations in other settings."
The positive result at the Mission Services men's shelter on James Street North came after a round of surveillance testing Wednesday.
I haven't heard of any additional positives, so I've got my fingers crossed that it's just the one," Shawn MacKeigan, director of men's services for Mission Services, said Friday.
The man was transported to the city's isolation centre for people who are homeless during the pandemic.
In the meantime, Mission Services has temporarily paused new admissions to the shelter amid ongoing testing. But it's currently at its 42-bed capacity.
There are instances of men who stayed at Mission Services and then went to other shelters, including the Salvation Army's Booth Centre on York Boulevard. They were brought back for testing.
The Salvation Army is working with public health and partner agencies to mitigate the transmission" of the virus, executive director James Moulton said in an email.
Public health hadn't yet declared an outbreak at the Mission Services shelter Friday with officials still conducting their assessment, a city spokesperson said in an email. Mission Services has stopped new admissions as a precaution until the investigation is complete."
The shelter system cases coincide with a wicked winter wave of the pandemic that has prompted further government restrictions, including a provincial stay-at-home order, to help halt transmission of the deadly virus.
Community spread within the homeless population is of particular concern with people in congregate settings moving from shelter to shelter and other services. It would be catastrophic," MacKeigan said of the spectre of a large outbreak.
The weekly surveillance effort, led by O'Shea's team and St. Joseph's Healthcare, and additional testing by Shelter Health Network and Good Shepherd have helped kept cases to a minimum.
It's the buffer for us between significant outbreak and trying to manage and keep our doors open," said Katherine Kalinowski, chief operating officer for Good Shepherd Centres in Hamilton.
The city has also channelled funding to operators to ensure physical distancing in shelters and secured hotel rooms as another tier of beds.
The Good Shepherd staff person who tested positive is connected to the temporary overflow shelter that opened this past fall at the old Cathedral Boys' school at 378 Main St. E.
That staff person is self-isolating, as are two others as a precaution, said Good Shepherd director Carmen Salciccioli.
The Cathedral site, whose 47 beds aren't all taken, has also temporarily stopped taking new residents until public health advises otherwise, Salciccioli said. Of course, we don't want to put anybody in jeopardy."
Teviah Moro is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: tmoro@thespec.com