New case counts from OPH and from the province often differ due to different data collection times.
Ottawa’s weekly rate of new cases per 100,000 residents has also declined from 88.9 on Saturday to 85.6 on Sunday. Other weekly metrics, such as the estimated reproduction number and the positivity rate are holding steady.
According to Ottawa Public Health’s COVID-19 dashboard, there have been 12,286 total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa since the pandemic began and 403 residents have died.
OTTAWA’S COVID-19 KEY STATISTICS
A province-wide lockdown went into effect on Dec. 26, 2020. Ottawa Public Health moved Ottawa into its red zone in early January.
A provincial stay-at-home order has been in effect since Jan. 14, 2021.
Ottawa Public Health data:
COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 85.6 cases
Positivity rate in Ottawa: 4.1 per cent (Jan. 8 – Jan. 14)
Reproduction number: 1.03 (seven day average)
Reproduction values greater than 1 indicate the virus is spreading and each case infects more than one contact. If it is less than 1, it means spread is slowing.
VACCINES
Ontario health officials say 11,007 doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered in the province on Saturday for a total of 200,097 since vaccinations began.
21,714 people have completed their vaccinations by receiving both required doses.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson told CTV News at Six on Saturday that the City had administered 19,980 doses of vaccine. The Ottawa Hospital said the city had received 22,245 total doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to date last week.
Health Canada says Ontario has so far received 277,050 doses of COVID-19 vaccines as of Jan. 14, 224,250 of which are the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and 52,800 of which are the Moderna vaccine.
ACTIVE CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA
The number of people in Ottawa with known active cases of COVID-19 has dropped slightly after reaching a record high of 1,286 on Saturday.
OPH says there are 1,274 people now dealing with active cased of COVID-19 in Ottawa.
The number of people whose cases have resolved rose by 134 on Sunday to a citywide total of 10,609 since the start of the pandemic.
The number of active cases is the number of total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. A case is considered resolved 14 days after known symptom onset or positive test result.
HOSPITALIZATIONS IN OTTAWA
The number of people in Ottawa hospitals with COVID-19 symptoms and in intensive care units fell by two on Sunday.
There are now 38 people in hospital with COVID-19, eight of whom are in the ICU.
Of the people in hospital, one is between the ages of 10 and 19 (this person is in the ICU), one is in their 30s (this person is in the ICU), one is in their 40s, three are in their 50s, eight are in their 60s (three are in the ICU), eight are in their 70s (three are in the ICU), nine are in their 80s and seven are 90 or older.
TESTING
Ontario health officials say 60,183 COVID-19 tests were performed provincewide on Saturday and 30,103 tests remain under investigation.
The Ottawa COVID-19 Testing Taskforce does not provide local testing updates on weekends. In its most recent report on Friday, the taskforce said 1,491 swabs were taken at assessment centres in Ottawa on Jan. 14 and 7,262 tests were performed.
The next update from the Ottawa COVID-19 Testing Taskforce will be released on Jan. 18.
CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA BY AGE CATEGORY
Here is a breakdown of all known COVID-19 cases in Ottawa by age category:
0-9 years old: 14 new cases (874 total cases)
10-19 years-old: 10 new cases (1,547 total cases)
20-29 years-old: 29 new cases (2,601 total cases)
30-39 years-old: 23 new cases (1,683 total cases)
40-49 years-old: 18 new cases (1,610 total cases)
50-59 years-old: 18 new cases (1,462 total cases)
60-69-years-old: 5 new cases (891 total cases)
70-79 years-old: 2 new cases (561 total cases)
80-89 years-old: 3 new cases (630 total cases)
90+ years old: 0 new cases (423 total cases)
Unknown: 1 new case (4 cases total)
COVID-19 CASES AROUND THE REGION
Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 45 new cases
Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: 5 new cases
Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington Public Health: 2 new cases
Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit: 6 new cases
Renfrew County and District Health Unit: 1 case removed
Outaouais region: 22 new cases
INSTITUTIONAL OUTBREAKS
Ottawa Public Health is reporting COVID-19 outbreaks at 36 institutions in Ottawa, including long-term care homes, retirement homes, daycares, hospitals and schools.
Three more outbreaks were declared at local group homes. Outbreaks at Portobello Retirement Residence and Manoir Marochel have ended.
There are seven active community outbreaks.
Three are linked to health workplaces, one is in a multi-unit dwelling, one is linked to an office workplace, one is linked to a distribution centre, and one is linked to a services workplace.
The schools and childcare spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:
Andrew Fleck Children’s Services – Licensed home daycare
Greenboro Children’s Centre
Montessori by Brightpath
Ruddy Family Y Child Care
Services à l’enfance Grandir Ensemble – La Maisonée – 28627
The long-term care homes, retirement homes, hospitals, and other spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:
Alta Vista Manor
Besserer Place
Centre D’Accueil Champlain
Chartwell Duke of Devonshire Retirement Home
Colonel By Retirement Home
Extendicare Laurier Manor
Extendicare Medex
Extendicare New Orchard Lodge
Extendicare West End Villa
Forest Hill
Garry J. Armstrong long-term care home
Grace Manor Long-term Care Home
Granite Ridge long-term care home
Group Home – 28608
Group Home – 28740
Group Home – 28848
Group Home – 29045 (NEW)
Group Home – 29049 (NEW)
Group Home – 29052 (NEW)
Hillel Lodge
Madonna Care Community
Oakpark Retirement Community
Redwoods Retirement Residence
Shelter – 28365
Sisters of Charity Couvent Mont Saint-Joseph
Sisters of Charity Maison Mère
St. Patrick’s Home
Supported Independent Living – 28110
Valley Stream Retirement Residence
Villa Marconi
Villagia in the Glebe Retirement Residence
A single laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in a resident or staff member of a long-term care home, retirement home or shelter triggers an outbreak response, according to Ottawa Public Health. In childcare settings, a single confirmed, symptomatic case in a staff member, home daycare provider, or child triggers an outbreak.
Under provincial guidelines, a COVID-19 outbreak in a school is defined as two or more lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in students and/or staff in a school with an epidemiological link, within a 14-day period, where at least one case could have reasonably acquired their infection in the school (including transportation and before or after school care).
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.