The Middlesex-London Health Unit added another 10 COVID-19 cases to end the week, though the total case count increased by nine, likely due to data cleanup. Six recoveries were also added to the tally.
As of Friday, the total case count is 12,729 with 54 active cases, 12,446 recoveries and 229 deaths locally.
The most recent death involved a partially vaccinated woman in her 80s reported July 15.
The total number of cases involving a variant of concern sits at 3,563, unchanged from Thursday.
The breakdown of known variant cases is as follows:
3,379 cases of the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7), first identified in the U.K.
105 cases of the Gamma (P.1) variant, first identified in Brazil
73 cases of the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant, first identified in India
two cases of the Beta (B.1.351) variant, first identified in South Africa
one case of the Kappa (B.1.617.1) variant, first identified in India
one case of the Zeta (P.2) variant, first identified in Brazil
There is also one case listed only as B.1.617 and one case listed as B.1.617.3.
A total of 11,510 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in London since the pandemic began, while 373 have been in Middlesex Centre and 334 in Strathroy-Caradoc.
The London Health Sciences Centre says it is caring for five or fewer inpatients with COVID-19, with five or fewer of those patients in the intensive care unit, as of Thursday.
In an effort to protect the privacy of patients, LHSC only provides specific numbers when there are more than five.
LHSC is not reporting any patients from outside of the region.
There are currently zero LHSC employees who have tested positive for COVID-19.
At St. Joseph’s Health Care London, the organization is reporting no cases involving patients, residents or health-care workers.
Institutional outbreaks
The MLHU is not reporting any institutional outbreaks.
On Thursday, the health unit said an outbreak tied to indoor gatherings at Christ Embassy Church at 1472 Dundas St., in London that involved six cases was now “under control.”
0:55 Canadian Olympic Committee’s top doctor “confident” in athlete safety amid pandemic
Canadian Olympic Committee’s top doctor “confident” in athlete safety amid pandemic
Vaccinations and testing
The MLHU provided updated vaccination data on Tuesday, showing that as of the end of day July 17, 79.0 per cent of residents aged 12 and older have had at least one dose, while 56.6 per cent are fully vaccinated.
The number of variant of concern cases is unchanged at 863, with 762 of those listed as the Alpha variant, 51 the Beta variant and 50 the Delta variant.
There are no active institutional outbreaks reported in the region.
The region’s test positivity rate was 1.1 per cent for the week of July 11, down slightly from 1.2 per cent for the week of July 4.
As of July 22, SWPH says 77.8 per cent of its residents aged 12 and older have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 57.6 per cent have had two doses.
As of July 19, walk-in appointments are available at all of SWPH’s mass vaccination clinics.
Appointments can be booked or re-booked through the online booking portal or by phone at 1-800-922-0096 ext. 9.
Huron Perth Public Health reported one new COVID-19 case and two recoveries on Friday.
The total number of cases in the region is now 1,936 with 14 active cases, 1,865 recoveries, and 57 deaths. There are 345 cases confirmed to involve a variant of concern.
Of the 14 active cases, eight are in Stratford. Case counts by municipality can be found on the health unit’s dashboard.
HPPH reports that one person is hospitalized with COVID-19.
There are no active institutional outbreaks reported in the region but one unidentified workplace outbreak is ongoing.
The region’s test positivity rate was 0.9 per cent for the week of July 11, up from 0.6 per cent for the week of July 4.
HPPH’s vaccine dashboard reported that 76.8 per cent of those aged 12 and older have had at least one vaccine dose, while 59.6 per cent are fully vaccinated, as of Friday.
Lambton Public Health is not reporting any active outbreaks in the region.
The region’s test positivity rate was just 0.34 per cent for the week of July 11, down from 0.95 per cent for the week of July 4.
As of Friday, 75.1 per cent of adults have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine while 63.0 per cent are fully vaccinated.
A walk-in clinic for anyone age 12-plus in need of a first dose will be held Saturday, July 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Dow Centre for Youth in Sarnia. More information can be found on the health unit’s website.
LPH is also asking everyone who has already received a first dose to book their second dose appointment as soon as possible as the region prepares to wind down mass immunization clinics next month.
Residents who are able to get vaccinated on short notice are encouraged to sign up for Lambton Public Health’s daily Vaccine Standby List.
Residents can book and re-book COVID-19 vaccine appointments using the health unit’s registration page. People can also call the vaccine call centre at 226-254-8222.
Some pharmacies are also continuing to offer Pfizer or Moderna shots.
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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