SWPH investigating illnesses at a high school staff event in St. Thomas

Southwestern Public Health has been working closely with Thames Valley District School Board to investigate a group of illnesses from a catered staff event at Parkside Collegiate Institute on April 8th. Approximately half of the nearly 100 faculty who attended developed gastrointestinal symptoms shortly after the event took place. No severe illnesses were identified, and students were not present at the event.

Food samples from the caterer found no evidence of bacterial contamination, such as salmonella, E.coli or other common bacterial food contaminants. A small number of stool samples were also collected for bacterial and viral testing. Bacteria were not detected in the samples, and viruses that typically cause this pattern of disease were not present.

“When a group of illnesses like this happens, we follow specific processes to gather evidence, test samples, and monitor whether the illness is spreading,” says Joanne Andrews, Manager, Infectious Diseases. “Sometimes the evidence available to us is limited, which is the case in this investigation. There is currently no evidence that the catered food was the source of the infection.”

Southwestern Public Health is continuing to monitor the situation.

"Reduce your risk of gastrointestinal illnesses by washing your hands, sanitizing surfaces, staying home when you feel sick, and avoiding shared food and drinks," says Andrews.