Collingwood General and Marine Hospital has declared an Influenza A outbreak on its Surgical and Medical units, prompting visitor limits to protect patients and staff. The move comes as South Georgian Bay enters the peak of the respiratory-illness season, with local flu and COVID-19 activity rising. Hospital officials say these measures will help contain transmission and maintain care capacity across the site.
Visiting is restricted on the affected units except for palliative or end-of-life patients and for essential caregivers who have been approved by a Department Manager or Resource Nurse. The Emergency Department is limiting each patient to one visitor at a time, according to the hospital’s news release.
The outbreak was declared in consultation with the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit after a cluster of laboratory-confirmed Influenza A cases among inpatients triggered Level 2 outbreak protocols. The hospital has isolated affected patients, increased cleaning, and reintroduced universal masking in clinical and patient areas. Staff and visitors are subject to health screening at entry points and are reminded to practise thorough hand hygiene and to self-monitor for symptoms before visiting.
CGMH provides care for the South Georgian Bay area — serving tens of thousands of permanent residents and about 3.5 million visitors annually — and frequently operates at or near capacity. In 2024, the medium-sized hospital managed a COVID-19 cluster on its Medical unit in late October and handled a norovirus outbreak in spring, placing additional pressure on infection-control resources. The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit has also reported an increase in institutional outbreaks across the region.
Families and caregivers should check current screening, masking and visitor-exception procedures before planning Emergency Department visits or inpatient stays to avoid unexpected delays, and anyone feeling unwell is urged to postpone their visit until fully recovered.
