Today, B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix presented their last in-person briefing until Tuesday (December 29).
With Christmas upon us, Henry implored everyone to remain local, keep gatherings small, and practise health measures.
“Show you care by staying apart and connecting with people in safe ways,” she said. “We want our family, our loved ones, to be there for the next celebration, for the holiday that we’re going to have when we get this pandemic under control. The fewer people we see now, the safer we will all be.”
Henry presented an update on data from recent weeks, including which age groups have been particularly affected and about case numbers in schools. She also provided information about who will be given priority for vaccinations in the next few months.
When Henry presented a graph that showed the rolling seven-day average since the start of the pandemic, it revealed that the number of active cases peaked in mid- to late-November, and have begun to decreased.
Henry said that December 15 to 21 was one of the most difficult weeks for the province as there was a total of 109 deaths in that time period, in addition to 4,025 new cases.
She also pointed out that the vast majority of cases in the second wave have been among people in the 20 to 29 year old age group. Cases were overrepresented in this age group as well as the 30 to 39 years old group in relation to their proportion of the population.
There was one person who died in the 30 to 39 year old age group and four deaths of people in the 40 to 49 year old age group.
But the vast majority of deaths, she said, have taken place among those 70 years and older.
“Age remains the single most important risk factor for severe illness or deaths from COVID-19,” she said.
Henry said that the recent health measures did prove to have an effect on case numbers by reducing social interactions.
She pointed out that hospitalizations are levelling off but that they are at the highest rate we have seen this year.
“The modelling has shown that the measures we are taking are working,” she said.
In contrast, she said children remain underrepresented for their proportion of the population.
School-aged children represent 12 percent of the cases.
B.C. has had four outbreaks declared at schools since reopening in September.
“Even though we have exposure events that reflect transmission in our community, we have very little transmission actually in schools,” she said. (Exposure events means someone who had COVID-19 is present in schools but does not necessarily mean transmission has taken place.)
From November 1 to December 18, there were 526 school exposures (which represent both students and adults) in B.C.’s 1,942 schools.
Of those exposures, 292 were in elementary schools, 158 in secondary schools, 39 in middle schools, and 37 in other educational institutions or facilities.
By region, there were:
288 exposure events in Fraser Health;
117 in Vancouver Coastal Health;
55 in Interior Health;
45 in Northern Health;
21 in Island Health.
Over 70 percent of B.C. schools have not had an exposure.
Vancouver Coastal Health reported that there were approximately 600 people (76 percent students and 24 percent staff) who tested positive (out of a total 120,000 people) but resulted in less than 200 exposure events in schools. No outbreaks have been declared at Vancouver Coastal Health schools.
Approximately 90 percent of cases in the Vancouver Coastal Health school system were acquired from outside schools, often from household contact.
Also there were less than 20 exposures in schools that led to transmission to one or two other people, which is less than 90 percent of cases. Henry said that after investigations, most transmission events involved staff members, not students.
In Fraser Health, exposure events took place in 384 schools, with one-third (133 schools) in Surrey, which is the largest school district.
Out of the 384 schools, 49 (13 percent) had potential in-school transmission events. Of these 49 schools, 23 schools (47 percent) were in Surrey.
Henry said that this data shows that schools remain safe when health measures are in place.
Province of British Columbia
Next week, the Moderna vaccine will arrive in B.C. As Henry previously mentioned, some of the initial doses will be delivered to rural and isolated First Nations communities.
That’s because, unlike the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine (which was first delivered to Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health), Moderna’s vaccine has fewer delivery restrictions. Accordingly, this vaccine is easier to send to and provide immunizations in rural and remote communities.
The priority populations for vaccinations by time frame are:
December to February:
longterm care and assisted-living facility staff and residents;
individuals waiting for longterm care;
essential visitors to longterm care or assisted living;
frontline healthcare workers in intensive care units;
remote or isolated First Nations communities.
February to March:
community-based seniors (80 years and older);
homeless individuals and individuals in shelters, group homes, correctional facilities, and mental-health residential care;
longterm care facility support recipients and staff;
hospital staff, general practitioners, and medical specialists;
First Nations communities.
Henry announced there are 518 new cases today, which includes:
332 new cases in Fraser Health;
97 in Vancouver Coastal Health;
49 in Interior Health;
31 in Northern Health;
nine in Island Health;
no one from outside of Canada.
Active cases continue to decline. Today, with 344 less cases since yesterday, there are now 9,137 active cases.
After an increase in hospitalizations yesterday, numbers have lowered again—348 individuals are currently in hospital (nine less than yesterday), with 80 of those patients are in intensive care units (four less people since yesterday).
Excluding the Northern Health region (which is still undergoing a data transfer process), public health is monitoring 9,689 people.
Tragically, the number of fatalities is high again—there are 19 new COVID-19-related deaths, which brings the cumulative total to 796 people who have died during the pandemic.
A total of 36,952 people have now recovered.
So far during the pandemic, B.C. has recorded a cumulative total of 48,027 cases, which includes:
30,559 in Fraser Health;
11,428 in Vancouver Coastal Health;
3,440 in Interior Health;
1,651 in Northern Health;
847 in Island Health;
102 people from outside Canada.
A total of 5,603 people have now been vaccinated in B.C.
B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix, with Dr. Bonnie HenryProvince of British Columbia
Two new healthcare facility outbreaks have been declared:
Evergreen Baptist Care Society (1550 Oxford Street) in White Rock, where Fraser Health stated that two residents and one staff member tested positive;
Minoru Residence (7333 Gollner Avenue) in Richmond, where Vancouver Coastal Health imposed restrictions on December 22.
Meanwhile, two healthcare outbreaks have been declared over: Fellburn Care Centre in Burnaby and Villa Carital in Vancouver are over.
Henry said there are 61 active outbreaks in healthcare facilities—55 in longterm care and six in acute care facilities.
The good news is that there aren’t any new community outbreaks.
Northern Health provided an update on the outbreak declared on December 19 at two worksites for the Coastal Gas Link project, stating that there are now 33 confirmed cases, with 18 of those cases currently active.
Meanwhile, Henry announced a new provincial health order for industrial camps in Northern Health to ensure a slower and phased approach is used to resume activities at these projects.
“At the start of the year, these camps typically have an influx of employees returning to the site,” Henry and Dix explained in their joint statement. “Combined, these factors mean a higher potential for spread amongst employees and in their home communities.”
The new order is designed to minimize any potential transmission.
Meanwhile, none of the five regional health authorities added any new public exposure events.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control added the following flights confirmed with COVID-19:
December 14: Air Canada 63, Vancouver to Seoul;
December 18: Aeromexico 696, Mexico City to Vancouver;
December 18: Air Canada/Jazz 8208, Prince George to Vancouver;
December 18: Air Canada/Jazz 8622, Vancouver to Winnipeg;
December 18: WestJet 3171, Calgary to Comox;
December 19: Air Canada 855, London to Vancouver;
December 19: Alaska Airlines/Horizon 2154, Seattle to Vancouver;
December 19: WestJet 706, Vancouver to Toronto;
December 19: WestJet 3290, Prince George to Vancouver.
Affected row information is available at the BCCDC website.
Sobeys had an employee test positive who last worked on December 14 at Safeway (1780 East Broadway) in Vancouver.
Loblaws reported staff members tested positive at three of its stores.
Two employees who tested positive last worked at Peter’s Your Independent Grocer (1835 Gordon Drive) in Kelowna on December 10 and 20.
The other two stores were Real Canadian Superstore locations:
one employee last worked on December 13 at the 4700 Kingsway store at Metrotown in Burnaby;
another employee last worked on December 19 at the 14650 104th Avenue store in Surrey.
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.
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.
