Alberta Premier Danielle Smith expressed her condolences and support to E.coli patients and their families on Sunday, nearly a week after the outbreak was declared. Currently, there are 190 confirmed cases linked to the outbreak, and 27 children remain hospitalized. Seven patients have been discharged.
According to Alberta Health Services, 20 patients have developed severe illness and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a rare condition that affects the kidneys and blood clotting functions. The Calgary Zone medical officer of health, Dr. Franco Rizzuti, stated that the severe illness is a result of a Shiga toxin-producing E. coli infection. A small number of children also require dialysis, and additional dialysis machines have been brought in from other AHS sites as a precaution.
On Sunday, Premier Smith shared her thoughts and prayers for the children affected by the outbreak, along with gratitude towards frontline workers treating them. She also announced that she has requested a full assessment of the outbreak from the Minister of Health, Adrianna LaGrange, and the Minister of Children and Family Services, Searle Turton, to prevent similar incidents in the future. Minister LaGrange posted a similar statement expressing support for the affected children and families.
This is the first public acknowledgement from both government officials since the outbreak was declared on September 4. Experts have labeled this outbreak as “historic” and highly unusual due to its scale, particularly affecting children under the age of five.
The impact of the outbreak is exemplified by two-year-old Amelia Leonard, one of the more than 100 patients affected. Amelia’s father, Ryan, shared their experience, revealing that doctors only discovered kidney dysfunction in Amelia on the second day of bloodwork. Amelia is now on dialysis, which began on Friday, and her father has noted some positive changes in her condition, although the future remains uncertain. Ryan expressed gratitude for the 80-90% chance of full recovery without permanent kidney damage but acknowledged the lingering possibility of long-term dialysis.
Alberta Health Services is continuing its investigation into the outbreak, testing samples from a central kitchen servicing multiple daycares in the Calgary area. However, the exact source of the outbreak has not been confirmed yet. Meanwhile, a group of parents have filed a statement of claim for a potential class action lawsuit against Fueling Brains Academy, the central kitchen, and other facilities citing negligent and unsanitary food storage, preparation, and handling practices.
AHS has announced that four daycare facilities will reopen on Monday, as long as no new positive cases are reported. The closure orders for the other seven facilities will be lifted on Tuesday, with staff and children required to show no gastrointestinal symptoms and test negative for E.coli before returning.
This article contains information from Adam Toy of Global News.
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