Toronto hospital staff urged to follow protocols after outbreak includes vaccinated people

A Toronto hospital network says several vaccinated people have been infected in a COVID-19 outbreak at one of its facilities.

The University Health Network says the outbreak first declared Thursday at Toronto Western Hospital's 6A unit has so far infected five patients and three staff.

It says it's urging staff to keep taking precautions to guard against the virus, even when vaccinated.

The hospital network says the majority of the cases are "more than likely" the highly transmissible Delta variant, and include people who had received a dose or two doses of COVID-19 vaccines.

However, it says those cases so far are mild.

The hospital network says despite the variant infecting those already immunized, vaccination efforts must continue to avoid hospitalizations.