Eleven elderly residents from the COVID-19 hit aged-care village at Edgeworth are set to be discharged from hospital, having survived the disease.
The residents, who were all vaccinated, will return to their nursing home at the RFBI Hawkins Masonic Village on Sunday and Monday.
Two other residents will remain in hospital for a few more days to ensure they've gone past the infectious period.
Frank Price, chief executive of RFBI [Royal Freemasons' Benevolent Institution], said it was "beautiful news and a medical miracle that the residents pulled through".
All were fully vaccinated.
"They're all really looking forward to coming home again," he said.
"We couldn't have done it if the residents hadn't been taken to hospital."
Mr Price said it was a Hunter New England Health decision to take the residents with COVID to hospital.
"They really need to be acknowledged for taking such a strong proactive step.
"Putting aside everything that RFBI and the hospital have done, if they [Hunter New England Health] hadn't done that we wouldn't be in such a good position now."
He praised staff at the village for their "work ethic and effort".
"They've been working ridiculously long hours. They have done everything in their power to make sure the residents still in the facility are looked after," he said.
The masonic village has now gone 12 days without a COVID case.
"We're out of lockdown on Sunday. We've managed to contain this in a three-week period, which is just phenomenal," Mr Price said.
In total, 15 residents and six staff from the masonic village tested positive for the virus. Two of the residents passed away. Mr Price said one of these residents needed oxygen in hospital, but refused it.
His name was Bill Beecham. He was 85. His wife Delma died in late June aged 84.
"He was ready to go, with his wife dying recently. He chose his time to go, which I think is the most honourable way to go. It is very touching," Mr Price said.
The other gentleman who died was in palliative care. His name was Kelvin Knight. He was 96.
"He was dying before COVID entered the facility. He passed away a day or so into the outbreak. He died with COVID not because of COVID," Mr Price said.
"These two gentlemen would have passed away in the same or similar time frame if we hadn't had COVID."
The outbreak occurred in one of three buildings in the nursing home section of the village. This building had 40 residents.
About 50 staff had to be isolated for two weeks due to being close contacts. Most of them have now returned to work.
Of the six staff who tested positive, five were now in the clear and one was still in the infectious phase, but is OK.
Mr Price said the staff at RFBI - which won a national award on Wednesday night - "care about the residents and what we do".
"Our staff work in this industry for the right reasons. It's been really tough on them. Their primary concern at all times has been the residents, making sure no one else is getting sick."
Mr Price said dealing with the outbreak had been "very hard".
"You hear about a COVID outbreak in an aged-care facility and you cringe and you're concerned."
The outbreak began at the village when a staff member without symptoms tested positive to COVID.
"Contact tracers still have no idea where that staffer caught it, as they had not been to any known hotspots," he said.
He was concerned that the virus had entered the village in a stealthy way.
"Our screening processes would never have picked it up and didn't," he said.
"My concern is it could happen again, so we've introduced a rapid antigen test.
"They're not 100 per cent full-proof, but it will give us an improved level of comfort.
"It's expensive, but if it means saving a life or giving people peace of mind then it's money well spent."
