The new cases bring the total number of known lab-confirmed and probable cases reported in Manitoba since March to 474 and come after just two new cases were reported Wednesday.
Manitoba’s chief public health officer, Dr. Brent Roussin, said the cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region are linked to a cluster cases in Brandon and added he expects to see further cases reported in western Manitoba city from the cluster.
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The initial Brandon case came from someone who travelled from the east and Roussin says the person was supposed to self-isolate but it “wasn’t done perfectly”
Roussin said 25 of the 30 new cases have been linked to other positive tests. He said investigations are ongoing and additional information will be provided as needed to inform people of any public health risks.
The news comes the same day as Global News confirmed three more employees at the Maple Leaf hog processing plant in Brandon tested positive for the virus, bringing the total number of employees from the plant ill with COVID-19 to four.
In an email to The Canadian Press the company said all employees are given a daily health screening and have their temperatures monitored. Employees are also supplied personal protective equipment and are required to social distance.
“We will continue to operate our Brandon plant as long as we believe we can provide an environment that will protect the safety of our people while working,” the email from Maple Leaf said.
Global News also learned Thursday a daycare in St. Francois Xavier, Man., is temporarily shutting down after a child who attends the centre reportedly also tested positive for the coronavirus.
Roussin said he couldn’t confirm the case reported at the daycare.
Roussin says we need to anticipate seeing cases in schools. He has the extra precautions within the cohorts will help stop spread outside of cohorts.
“Public health will do its usual investigation, look into where contact could have occurred, if it is in a school or in a daycare. We’re going to contact everyone who could be, could have contacted and advise accordingly.”
Manitoba had gone nearly half the month of July without reporting a single new case of the virus. But that streak ended July 14 when five new cases were identified. Since then 144 new cases have been reported in Manitoba, including a one-day jump of 18 on Sunday.
Roussin said the recent increase in cases isn’t enough for him to consider rolling back the province’s loosened public health restrictions.
“It’s certainly a reminder to Manitobans that this virus is here — if we let our guards down, we can certainly see our numbers climb,” he said Thursday.
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“But as far as right now we want to stick with the fundamentals, we don’t want to impose significant restrictions — because we think if we can stick with those fundamentals we can live with this virus rather than shut things down.”
The highest one-day jump in cases the province has seen since the virus arrived in March was 40, recorded on April 2.
As of Thursday Health officials said 10 people are currently in hospital with the virus, including five in intensive care.
They said there are 118 known active cases and 384 people have recovered from the virus. Eight Manitobans have died.
Officials also advising of potential exposure on Air Canada flight AC 8595 rows 16-22 from Montreal to Winnipeg on July 29. Individuals in this area are advised to self isolate for 14 days.
Health officials also warned of a potential exposure to COVID-19 for passengers on a plane that arrived in Winnipeg July 29.
They say passengers in rows 16-22 on Air Canada flight AC 8595 from Montreal to Winnipeg should self-isolate for 14-days following the flight and monitor for symptoms. Passengers on the flight, but not in the affected seats, should self-monitor for symptoms and self-isolate if they develop.
The province says 564 lab tests for COVID-19 were done Wednesday, bringing the total number of tests completed in Manitoba since early February to 95,547.
The new cases bring the province’s test positivity rate to 0.90 per cent.
Coronavirus: After long-weekend spike, Manitoba announces 2 additional COVID-19 cases
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
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Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
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