A total of 19 residents at a Fife care home have died after contracting Covid-19 in what is one of the worst local outbreaks so far in the pandemic.
NHS Fife confirmed the tragic death toll following a cluster of Covid-19 cases associated with Lomond Court Care Home in Glenrothes.
A total of 31 residents within the care home have now been confirmed as positive for Covid-19, while an additional 40 staff and other individuals linked to the home have also been confirmed as positive for the virus.
The home remains closed to new admissions and efforts to curb the spread of the virus have been stepped up.
NHS Fife’s Health Protection Team and the Fife Health and Social Care Partnership continues to work alongside Fife Council’s Environmental Health Service to support the management of the care home and help reduce further transmission of the virus.
NHS Fife’s deputy director of public health, Dr Esther Curnock, said: “We can confirm there have been further cases of Covid-19 associated with Lomond Court Care Home and our hearts go out to those who have lost loved ones at such a difficult time.
“Covid-19 is particularly infectious in older adults and care homes across Fife are working incredibly hard to try and prevent clusters of COVID-19 from developing.
“Alongside our colleagues in Fife Council and the Fife Health and Social Care Partnership, we are assisting care home managers in any way we can to prevent spread and ensure that residents continue to receive a good standard of care.”
The virus has apparently ripped through Lomond Court in the past four weeks after an initial 26 residents and 22 staff were said to have tested positive for coronavirus at the start of December.
Giving that update, NHS Fife confirmed a number of residents at the home in Woodside had passed away, although it would not divulge the exact number due to reasons of confidentiality.
However, the health board did confirm the number was fewer than five.
Close contacts of residents and staff members working in the home are in the process of being traced, and those people are being urged to self-isolate and book a test.
Anyone experiencing the well-established symptoms of Covid-19, regardless of how mild, should immediately self-isolate and arrange a test using the NHS inform website www.nhsinform.scot or by calling 0800 028 2816.
A spokesperson at HC-One, which operates Lomond Court, said residents at the home are all doing well and have recovered.
All residents have passed their 14-day isolation period and there have been no new positive cases for two weeks.
A spokesperson for the home said: “Our thoughts and sympathies are with all families who have lost a loved one from coronavirus and we are doing our utmost to support them during this difficult time.
“Our residents become part of our family and their loss is felt deeply by carers who have built relationships with them over many years.
“We are doing everything we can to support our residents to return to good health and they are our absolute priority. The home continues to be well supplied with the resources they need to respond to the outbreak and we are working closely with our local health partners including NHS Fife.”
