The COVID-19 outbreak at Chartwell St. Albert Retirement Residence has been declared officially over, while the one at the Youville Home has just one active case left.
However, while the battle may be over, many St. Albert seniors lost their lives to the virus. Almost all the 37 St. Albertans who have passed away from the pandemic lived in long-term care or designated care homes.
According to Alberta Health, 33 out of the 37 deaths recorded by the provincial body were linked to outbreaks in three care homes in the city, which accounts for 89 per cent of all the city's deaths. This is higher than the provincial average of 65 per cent.
The Youville Home told the Gazette its one remaining case is a staff member. Overall, Youville said its outbreak included 55 staff members and 74 residents. Youville says 22 residents died, 17 of which Alberta Health has officially recorded in provincial data.
Alberta Health and long-term care homes sometimes report different numbers for deaths, which Alberta Heath spokesperson Tom McMillan previously said could be due to a number of factors.
"There can sometimes be a delay in a death being reported via the provincial tracking system, or delay in a death being determined post-mortem to have COVID-19 as a contributing cause, or sometimes a facility may be incorrect," McMillan said.
At Chartwell St. Albert, all 84 cases diagnosed among residents have been resolved. Thirty-seven cases among staff have also been resolved. Fifteen residents who tested positive for COVID-19 died.
The outbreak at St. Albert Retirement Residence is also over with 68 residents recovering. The facility reported four deaths, of which two were recorded by Alberta Health.
As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 52 active cases of COVID-19 in St. Albert, down from 59 reported on Friday. St. Albert has the lowest active cases the city has seen since mid-October.
In Morinville, the outbreak at Aspen House has claimed four lives, with three cases still active and 44 people having recovered. The Aspen House outbreak makes up 40 per cent of the town's COVID-19-related deaths.
