Hawkesbury Village aged care home hit by COVID – catering contractor tests positive

Uniting Hawkesbury aged care home on Richmond’s Chapel Street – also known as Hawkesbury Village – went into lockdown on Wednesday morning after a catering contractor working there tested positive for COVID.

Residents have been isolated in their households and all employees are wearing full PPE, relatives have been told.

So far no residents have tested positive for the virus.

A Zoom call was held yesterday to give families the details and they have also been emailed by Uniting.

The catering contractor tested positive for COVID following a precautionary asymptomatic test, according to an email sent to relatives.

The staff member was on shift on Monday afternoon and evening.

The home have started taking swabs of all residents and employees and have ensured staff who may have had contact with the catering staff member are not at work and are being supported by the Public Health Unit, which has been informed, says the email to residents which the Post has seen.

“All of your loved ones are well and symptom free as of today,” said yesterday’s email.

Relatives were told more than 99% of employees and contractors have had at least 1 dose of a COVID vaccine “with the vast majority fully vaccinated”.

Nearly 90% of residents have received at least 1 dose of a COVID vaccine, “again with the vast majority being fully vaccinated”, said the email.

The home is not the first in Richmond to be hit by COVID. Hawkesbury Living on March St has recorded over 20 cases of the virus amongst staff and residents.

We asked Uniting for comment yesterday about Hawkesbury Village and will add to this story when we get more.

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