COVID-19 in B.C.: Surge in new cases sets another record, as Dr. Bonnie Henry warns social events may be restricted - The Georgia Straight | Canada News Media
British Columbia is seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases, which may result in more restrictions being implemented in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
At today’s briefing, B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said the province has reached a “critical time” as we enter influenza season.
As mentioned in her news release yesterday, she once again emphasized that social gatherings, including weddings and other celebrations, are directly linked to increased case numbers, resulting in clusters and outbreaks that are spreading to the healthcare system.
What they are seeing, she said for example, are events that are being planned for thirty to forty people but wind up experiencing unexpected developments, such as extra guests arriving, plans changing, or difficulties in limiting the number of attendees. At these events, she said, guests have wound up mixing and interacting, which leads to transmission.
Event organizers are also informing her that they are experiencing pressure or problems in controlling numbers of people and she added issues related to party buses and limousines are arising once again, as well as people attending multiple events with different groups of people.
While she thanked the majority of people for doing the right thing and she recognized the importance of these social events, she also issued a warning.
“While I am reluctant to do so, if there is a major source of transmission, additional measures can and will be put in place if they’re needed,” she said.
She explained that could include adding conditions for wedding licenses, placing restrictions on numbers of people for indoor gatherings, or using other measures that would prevent large transmission events from developing.
In addition, she said they are seeing transmission related to businesses and large workplaces—in lunchrooms, carpools, and work interactions.
Accordingly, she asked employers to review their workplace safety plans as WorkSafeBC, environmental health teams, and enhanced enforcement will increase inspections in the coming weeks.
She reminded people to keep social numbers limited, with a maximum of six contacts outside immediate households.
Henry announced that there are 274 new cases (including one epi-linked case) in B.C. today.
This is the third time this week that the province has set a record for new case counts. The previous records were 174 new cases confirmed on October 19, followed by 203 new cases reported yesterday (October 21).
Active cases continue to climb for yet another consecutive day. The province is now up to 1,920 active cases—up 154 cases since yesterday.
Also once again, hospitalized cases only increased by one patient, this time to 71 people in hospital, with 24 patients in intensive care units (also once again an increase of three patients).
Public health is monitoring 4,425 people (due to exposure to confirmed cases), which an increase of 131 people from yesterday.
There aren’t any new community outbreaks.
Although Henry didn’t announce any new healthcare outbreaks during the briefing, one new healthcare outbreak—at the Dr. Al Hogg Pavilion (15521 Russell Avenue) at Peace Arch Hospital in White Rock—was later announced in her daily news release.
The outbreak at the Weinberg Residence Senior Home in Vancouver has been declared over.
Active outbreaks are now in 20 healthcare facilities (18 longterm care facilities and two intensive care units). There have been 950 cases (546 residents and 404 staff) involved in healthcare outbreaks during the pandemic.
With no new deaths announced, the death toll remains at 256 people who have died during the pandemic.
A cumulative total of 10,114 people (82 percent of all cases) are now considered recovered.
During the pandemic, there has been a cumulative total of 12,331 cases reported in B.C., including:
6,725 in Fraser Health;
4,260 in Vancouver Coastal Health;
644 in Interior Health;
365 in Northern Health;
249 in Island Health;
88 people from outside Canada.
École de l’Anse-au-sable in Kelowna
The province declared its first outbreak at a school—at at École de l’Anse-au-sable (675 Lequime Road) in Kelowna—yesterday.
In this outbreak, Henry said that three cases were identified yesterday but that number has grown to a total of five cases today, with 160 people at home in self-isolation.
The cases are unlinked transmissions within the school, which Henry explained means that how these individuals contracted COVID-19 (or identifying which individuals transmitted the virus to other individuals) remains to be determined during the ongoing health investigation.
Henry pointed out that with over 2,000 schools in the province, there have been 213 exposures events in schools, which includes six clusters. (She explained that clusters defined as more than one person, who has been exposed, has been confirmed with COVID-19 within a school.)
She said that approximately one-third of cases have been among staff while two-thirds have been among students, and the majority have been in the Fraser Health and Vancouver Coastal Health regions, which have the largest numbers of schools and students.
She also pointed out that the majority of the exposure events in schools have not led to transmission to anyone else testing positive.
École Anne-Hébert Elementary School in Vancouver
Vancouver Coastal Health added two schools with new exposures, both in Vancouver:
John Henderson Elementary (451 E 53rd Avenue) had an exposure on October 13;
École Anne-Hébert Elementary School (7051 Killarney Street) had exposures on October 15 and 16.
Meanwhile, Fraser Health added eight schools with new exposure events.
In Burnaby, Lakeview Elementary (7777 Mayfield Street) had exposures from October 13 to 14.
In Coquitlam, École Banting Middle School (820 Banting Street) had exposures from October 13 to 14.
in Surrey, Senator Reid Elementary (9341 126th Street) had an exposure on October 13.
In Port Moody, Port Moody Secondary (300 Albert Street) had an exposure on October 13.
In Langley, two schools were added:
Dorothy Peacock Elementary (20292 91a Avenue) had an exposure on October 9;
Langley Secondary School (21405 56th Avenue) had exposures from October 13 to 15.
In Abbotsford, two schools were added:
Mountain Elementary (2299 Mountain Drive) had an exposure event from October 6 to 8;
Dave Kandal Elementary (3351 Crestview Avenue) had exposures on October 15 and 16.
Island Health reported its second exposure incident in a school, which is also in Port Alberni: Wood Elementary (4111 Wood Avenue) in Port Alberni, with an exposure on October 19. (The only previous exposure in a school on Vancouver Island was at Alberni District School in Port Alberni on September 14, 15, 17, 18, and 22).
Dorothy Peacock Elementary in Langley
Sobeys announced on October 21 that an employee at Safeway (2315 West 4th Avenue) in Kitsilano in Vancouver, who last worked at the location on October 18, has tested positive.
Fraser Health has listed an exposure event at the Jolly Coachman Pub (19167 Ford Road) in Pitt Meadows from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from October 9 to 11; 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. on October 12; and 5 to 11 p.m. on October 14.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) added these three flights confirmed with COVID-19 to its list:
October 14: WestJet 637, Calgary to Abbotsford, affected rows 9 to 15;
October 16: Lufthansa 492, Frankfurt to Vancouver, affected rows 18 to 24;
October 19: Air Canada 8484, Vancouver to Edmonton, affected rows 7 to 13.
Anyone in the affected rows should monitor themselves for symptoms for 14 days from the flight date and if you develop symptoms, immediately self-isolate and call 811 (if in B.C.) or your local healthcare provider for testing information.
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.
