Covid positive Boandik Lodge resident dies following outbreak at Lake Terrace facility

Mount Gambier is counting the cost of Covid as a local family comes to terms with the loss of an elderly relative who died after contracting the virus following an outbreak at their aged care home.

A Mount Gambier aged care resident has died in hospital as a regional care home continues to battle an ongoing Covid-19 outbreak among staff and residents.

So far 22 residents and 37 staff from Boandik have tested positive to the virus, with 20 residents and 25 staff making a full recovery.

Boandik, which has several aged care facilities in Mount Gambier, has been in the grips of a Covid outbreak since early January.

Boandik chief executive Gillian McGinty said that due to privacy reasons she could not reveal the age of the patient, their gender or when the person died.

However, she did say the person’s death was recent and occurred while they were in hospital.

“They were actively being treated in hospital for Covid and other medical conditions,” Mrs McGinty said.

“It’s very sad ... for their family and for all of the Boandik community.”

So far 111 people in South Australia have died while Covid positive.

Data from SA Health demonstrates people who passed away were n the 70 to 90-year-old age groups.

Boandik Lake Terrace may roll back visitor bans to its Lake Terrace facility as early as this week. Picture: Facebook / Boandik Lodge

A strict no visitors’ policy was placed at the Lake Terrace facility but this was lifted on Thursday.

Lake Terrace residents will now be able to have one visitor per day for up to one hour.

Residents of remaining sites are still limited to two visitors per day - this rule was introduced on January 11.

Mrs McGinty said visitor restrictions would remain in place until community spread was under control.

She said a ban on all unvaccinated children, including those unable to receive the jab, was set to remain “for the time being”.

“We are currently setting up a system to keep everybody safe,” Mrs McGinty previously said.

Mrs McGinty said all visitors would have to provide their own negative rapid antigen test “before they can come in”.

“At this point in time we won’t (provide the RAT),” she said.

Boandik chief executive Gillian McGinty. Picture: Boandik

With a high number of staff who are Covid positive at Boandik, the facility turned to the Federal Government’s surge workforce to help fill the roster shortfalls.

Mrs McGinty said most staff had returned to work and hoped by the end of the week that the centre would “be back to the normal roster”.

Boandik has 229 residents across its three sites with 73 and 68 at the Crouch Street and St Mary’s locations respectively, employing around 270 residential and hospitality staff across all three sites.

There have been no Covid positive people at its other aged care homes.

According to the latest figures there are 978 active cases in the Limestone Coast and 386 active cases in Mount Gambier.

All facilities offer interaction between residents and their loves ones via phone, Facetime or window side visits.

Window visits allow family to sit on the grounds and communicate through the resident’s opened window, allowing the two to communicate without an outside visitor walking through the facility.

Mrs McGinty confirmed unvaccinated children would be able to use this option.