The testing lab that handles all of Nova Scotia’s COVID-19 results moved to round-the-clock operations Monday, on the same day the province identified 31 new cases of the virus and removed travel as one of the screening requirements.
That brings the provincial total of known cases to 293. Those known cases range in age from under 10 to older than 90.
Previously, one of the prerequisites for getting swabbed was having travelled recently outside of the province. To get tested, people will still need to use the province’s self-assessment questionnaire and get an appointment.
The questionnaire now simply asks people if they have a fever greater than 38 C, or if they have a new cough or a cough that’s getting worse. If they answer yes to either question, they should phone 811.
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Nine people are currently in hospital and 64 are listed as recovered.
To date, there have been 10,218 negative COVID-19 test results in the province.
Applications for workers, small businesses ready on Friday
Last week, the province announced $20 million to help self-employed and laid-off workers who do not quality for employment insurance, as well as another $20 million to help small businesses.
“People will be working all weekend to process applications to get the money flowing as quickly as possible,” McNeil said.
The applications will be available online, but were originally supposed to be in place by today.
Peak case numbers expected in late April
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang said Nova Scotia will probably be hitting its peak number of cases toward the end of April.
“How big that peak is and how dramatic that peak is all up to us,” Strang said.
“What it looks like afterwards, you don’t just come out of this quickly.”
He said there will likely be a full eight to 10-week period where case numbers will decline after the peak.
‘I am frustrated,’ says McNeil
The province continues to urge Nova Scotians to stay home as much as possible.
Strang clarified that police will not be stopping people to ask why they are driving, but he asked people to use common sense when going out on the roads.
He said essential trips like going to the pharmacy or for groceries are OK, but people should not be driving for social reasons.
This map shows the breakdown of known COVID-19 cases in Nova Scotia by health zone, as of Monday, April 6, 2020. (Province of Nova Scotia)
McNeil echoed those comments.
“While we are still frustrated, and I am frustrated, by those who continue to be reckless with our health by not following public health protocol, I will say the vast majority of Nova Scotians are starting to recognize the importance of self-isolation and the six-foot distance,” McNeil said.
“But if things persist, particularly at our beaches and other parts, we’ll continue to look at what are our options for penalties we can put in place.”
New measures for long-term care homes
Strang said the province has also directed long-term care homes to follow certain measures to prevent COVID-19 from entering the facilities and reducing the spread if someone tests positive.
He said the directives to long-term care homes include screening staff and residents at least once a day, and twice if it’s feasible.
All staff members will be required to take their temperature at the start of their shift, as well as undergo a health screening.
Any new admissions to a facility will also require a health screening to ensure someone hasn’t been exposed to COVID-19.
Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil said at a COVID-19 briefing on April 6, 2020, that he’s frustrated ‘by those who continue to be reckless with our health by not following public health protocol.’ (CBC)
Strang said the province is also reinforcing practising physical distancing, enhancing cleaning and placing restrictions on visitors.
There are also instructions on how to take appropriate testing and identify potential contacts if anyone tests positive.
Long-term care homes must also continue to report any respiratory illnesses to public health, even if it’s one single case.
The directives take effect immediately.
“We now feel we need to move this from a guideline that facilities are being asked to do, to make it a clear directive,” Strang said.
This site in Elmsdale, N.S., has been transformed into the first temporary assessment centre for COVID-19. It opened on Sunday, April 5. (Craig Paisley/CBC)
Temporary assessment centres will be established in communities where it is known the virus is present, with the first such centre being set up in Elmsdale, N.S.
Two SUVs will also be used as mobile testing centres, with one in the Halifax Regional Municipality and one in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.
Strang said have started mobile testing where they have the greatest need, but said they are looking to expand testing.
Another possible public exposure
Public health is also advising people of a potential public exposure to COVID-19 at The Magnolia, a long-term care facility in Enfield, N.S. The possible exposure was on March 11 at a celebration of life.
People who were there and have experienced symptoms are asked to call 811.
VANCOUVER – Mayors and other leaders from several British Columbia communities say the provincial and federal governments need to take “immediate action” to tackle mental health and public safety issues that have reached crisis levels.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim says it’s become “abundantly clear” that mental health and addiction issues and public safety have caused crises that are “gripping” Vancouver, and he and other politicians, First Nations leaders and law enforcement officials are pleading for federal and provincial help.
In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier David Eby, mayors say there are “three critical fronts” that require action including “mandatory care” for people with severe mental health and addiction issues.
The letter says senior governments also need to bring in “meaningful bail reform” for repeat offenders, and the federal government must improve policing at Metro Vancouver ports to stop illicit drugs from coming in and stolen vehicles from being exported.
Sim says the “current system” has failed British Columbians, and the number of people dealing with severe mental health and addiction issues due to lack of proper care has “reached a critical point.”
Vancouver Police Chief Adam Palmer says repeat violent offenders are too often released on bail due to a “revolving door of justice,” and a new approach is needed to deal with mentally ill people who “pose a serious and immediate danger to themselves and others.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
