Seven patients and 9 employees of the oncology department of AZ Nikolaas in Sint-Niklaas have tested positive for the corona virus. VTM News reports this. The patients in the ward, 42 in total, are all in separate rooms. Visit is strictly prohibited.
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After a nurse tested positive for the virus last Wednesday, the entire ward was tested. “Until Sunday evening, nobody had any symptoms,” Ines Deleu, head of medical oncology at AZ Nikolaas, told VTM Nieuws. ‘On Monday there will be a few patients with mild respiratory complaints and two with slightly more severe complaints. There is no need for intensive care. ‘
All 42 patients on the ward are all separately in a single room. The patients, who tested positive for the coronavirus, were completely isolated. ‘Everyone is looked after by two separate care teams and two ward doctors,’ says Deleu. ‘Visitors are absolutely not allowed because we want to protect everyone. You can regard it as a small lockdown within the hospital. ‘ A patient was now allowed to leave the hospital, he is staying at home in quarantine. New cancer patients are treated in a different department of the hospital.
Multiple sources
How the virus entered the department is not yet clear. ‘There can also be multiple sources,’ says Deleu. ‘When the government decided to relax the measures, we already feared this.’
Infectiologist Erika Vlieghe finds the outbreak worrying but asks not to postpone the concern. ‘If you need care, go to the hospital. It is important not to postpone care, hospitals do everything they can to guarantee safety as much as possible. ‘
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