With breakthrough COVID-19 cases on the rise, BC Care Providers calls for booster shot for seniors

KAMLOOPS — Three Kamloops care homes are battling COVID-19 outbreaks. Overlander Residential Care, Kamloops Seniors Village and The Hamlets all have positive cases of the virus along with ten other care homes in the B.C. Interior.

The BC Care Providers Association says the virus is getting into the homes through unvaccinated staff.

“It just doesn’t make sense to me that someone working in healthcare wouldn’t observe the cardinal rule in healthcare which is, ‘Above all, do no harm,’” said Terry Lake, CEO of the BC Care Providers Association.

Lake says he hopes this will change after October 12, when it will become mandatory for all BC care home staff members to be vaccinated or to undergo rapid testing everyday if unvaccinated — but he thinks more could be done.

“We have seen some homes in the province with six or seven deaths and that’s unacceptable and sometimes among vaccinated residents. It may be we’re seeing waning of immunity and this third booster shot will have to come — and I hope it comes sooner rather than later,” Lake told CFJC News.

To prevent so called ‘breakthrough’ cases, Ontario and Alberta area already offering seniors booster shots. British Columbia has yet to approve a third jab.

“We’re seeing the breakthrough cases just because the likelihood of coming into contact and getting infected with the Delta variant is so much higher compared to original COVID,” explained Dr. Carol Fenton, medical health officer at Interior Health.

Although the vaccine mandate for care home staff is intended to help curb the spread, it comes with the potential loss of staff members who refuse to get vaccinated.

Lake says ‘a handful of employees’ have already resigned. In the long term, he says this shouldn’t be a problem and feels confident they can recruit more staff.

For now, Lake says the mandate has had a positive effect.

“There are some healthcare aids for instance that were reluctant to get vaccinated that are now getting vaccinated,” he said.

“I think the intended effect of the vaccination order is starting to happen and we hope this won’t be a real problem come October 12.”