ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - A resident of a nursing home in St. John's has contracted the swine flu, officials said Tuesday.
The man, a resident of the Hoyles-Escasoni Complex, showed signs of a relatively mild respiratory illness before officials confirmed he had swine flu, said Dr. David Allison, Eastern Health's regional medical officer of health.
"This is somebody with complex medical problems and so I think the background of the situation leads one to be concerned about the individual," Allison said in an interview.
The man is in stable condition, but it's not clear how he contracted the flu, Allison said.
"The challenge with a nursing home is it's a closed setting and so the likelihood is that a worker or a visitor who is ill brought in the illness," he said.
"It may have been transmitted by another person who's a resident of the nursing home or the individual, in fact, might have been out on a visit to the community and picked it up there."
Eastern Health has implemented restrictions at the Hoyles-Escasoni Complex, asking visitors to call the home's nurses' station before arriving.
The health board is also telling people not to visit the nursing home if they have flu-like symptoms.
The man has also been isolated from other residents at the nursing home, Allison said.
