SickKids, North York General hospitals declare COVID-19 outbreaks

SickKids and North York General hospitals have declared outbreaks of COVID-19 at their facilities.

SickKids is experiencing an outbreak in an inpatient unit specializing in hematology/oncology. A teenager was diagnosed with the virus this past weekend, but now the patient's parents and a member of the patient's clinical team have tested positive for COVID-19.

All other patients on the affected unit have tested negative for COVID-19, and staff on the unit continue to be tested, SickKids said on its website.

On Tuesday morning, a second patient tested positive for the virus, but in a different unit. The patient is now in an isolation room and is in stable condition.

"While this is certainly not the kind of news we want to be sharing, the fact is we have been fortunate at SickKids thus far - these are our first positive inpatient cases since the pandemic started over six weeks ago," said Dr. Ronald Cohn, president and CEO of SickKids.

"I have full and absolute confidence in our teams here at SickKids and in our ability to continue to provide the best possible care, while protecting the safety of our patients, families and staff."

Meanwhile, North York General Hospital has declared an outbreak in its reactivation unit - 5 West. Three patients have tested positive for COVID-19, the hospital said on its website.

"The health and safety of our patients is our top priority and all appropriate precautions are in place," the hospital said in a statement. "Patients and staff continue to be monitored."

As of Tuesday, Toronto Public Health reports there have been 4,973 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in the city.

In Toronto, 2,930 people have recovered from the illness and 305 have died. The first reported case of COVID-19 in Canada was in Toronto on Jan. 25.

Aaron D'Andrea is a reporter with toronto.com. Reach him via email: adandrea@toronto.com