Alberta is still working on an E. coli outbreak claims portal. coli

For the first time since the start of the E. coli in Calgary daycares more than two weeks ago, no new cases have been added to the tally.

But parents hoping to lighten their wallets are still waiting for the province to launch a web portal to apply for the promised “compa*sionate compensation.”

Over the past day, provincial authorities said there were no new laboratory-confirmed cases linked to the outbreak and no new secondary infections had been identified.

As of September 19, 348 laboratory-confirmed cases have been identified in the outbreak, of which 27 resulted from secondary transmission.

Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Mark Joffe said the fact that Alberta Health Services is not seeing a “significant spike” in secondary cases is “a reason for cautious optimism as we head towards what we hope will soon be the end of this extremely serious epidemic. .”

CMOH said there were still eight children under the age of five who were not yet well enough to return home from hospital, all of whom were suffering from hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a related complication. to the kidneys and blood. A child was released from the hospital the day before.

Two children still need dialysis treatments, one fewer than yesterday, Joffe said.

Six daycares remain closed, Joffe said, due to secondary transmission:

• Country Hills Active Child Program – Dolphins and Starfish Preschool Cla*ses
• CanCare Daycare – Scenic Acres Location – Busy Bees, Bumble Bees and Butterflies Cla*ses
• CEFA Early Learning Calgary South – Cla*s JK 3-1
• Renert Junior Kindergarten – the four cla*ses of Junior K
• Daycare 1ère Cla*se Shawnessy – The “Main daycare” area is closed
• Calgary JCC Child Care – closure order issued for infant and toddler rooms on September 15

Vik Academy was able to resume normal operations after children attending the daycare received negative E. coli tests. And children in two cla*ses at MTC Daycare have been told they cannot return to daycares until they receive negative test results.

The central kitchen believed to be the initial source of the outbreak remains closed indefinitely, Joffe said.

On Thursday, Premier Danielle Smith announced that parents affected by daycare closures would receive $2,000 per child in “compa*sionate compensation.”

The province then clarified that this amount was intended for parents of children who attended the original 11 daycares that were closed at the start of the outbreak on September 4, and that accepting these funds would not prevent parents to take legal action.

But these funds have not yet reached the parents.

Children and Family Services Minister Searle Turton said he is working with different Alberta government ministries to set up the application web portal so families can access the funds.

“I know there is a lot of anxiety about when these funds will be released and we are doing everything we can to get these funds released as quickly as possible,” Turton said.

With 707 children cleared to return to daycares, Joffe said the “very thorough” investigation into the source of the outbreak continues.

“Our public health team is reviewing the dietary histories of more than 1,150 children and 250 daycare workers. This includes both those who became ill and those who did not, all of whom were in the 11 affected daycares between August 15 and 31,” CMOH said.

He said comparing dietary history can help determine the likely source of the outbreak.

“We may never know the exact source of the outbreak, but we are doing our best to reduce it and, again, this will inform future steps and future prevention,” Joffe said.

CMOH also said the investigation covered all aspects of the supply chain that supplied this central kitchen.

“The investigation looks at all aspects of food preparation, food procurement, transportation, delivery, preparation in kitchens (and) in daycares,” Joffe said.

Turton said the province has begun contacting child care operators across the province to find out how many of them share kitchens, as part of the policy and standards review his ministry is working on.

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