Meanwhile, the Middlesex-London Health Unit reported three deaths on Saturday and a total of 818 cases from Saturday to Monday.
The deaths involved three vaccinated men in their 80s and 90s, two of whom were associated with long-term care.
Hospitalizations
As noted, LHSC is caring for 147 inpatients with COVID-19, up from 89 last Monday.
Of those, 21 are in adult critical care, unchanged from a week ago.
Five or fewer of the 147 are in Children’s Hospital, with five or fewer in pediatric critical care, unchanged from last Monday.
Of the 147 patients, 83 are being treated for COVID-19 while 64 others in hospital have incidental COVID-19 infections (meaning they were admitted for another reason). Last Monday, those figures were 68 and 21, respectively.
Among staff, there are 390 cases of COVID-19, down from 434 a week ago.
There are several outbreaks at LHSC at St. Joseph’s Health Care London. Further information can be found in the Outbreaks section, below.
St. Joseph’s Health Care London reported 49 cases among patients or residents in its care as of Monday and 105 health-care workers with COVID-19, up from 25 and 70 a week ago, respectively. The patient/resident cases involve 27 cases at Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care, 21 at Parkwood Institute Main Building and one at Parkwood Institute Mental Health Care Building.
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Cases and testing
As noted, the MLHU reported three deaths on Saturday.
The deaths involved a man in his 80s, not associated with a long-term care facility, who had received three doses of vaccine; a man in his 90s, associated with long-term care who had received two doses of vaccine; and a man in his 80s, associated with long-term care who had received three doses of vaccine.
The MLHU is not naming the facilities that two of the deaths were associated with.
The health unit also reported 201 cases on Monday, 288 on Sunday and 329 on Saturday. Due to changes in eligibility for PCR testing, daily case counts are no longer considered a fully reliable reflection of COVID-19 activity in the region.
In total, there have been 26,334 confirmed cases since the onset of the pandemic, including 2,927 active cases (a decrease of 205 from Friday), 23,137 resolved cases (an increase of 1,043 from Friday) and 270 deaths (an increase of three).
The test positivity rate for the week of Jan. 2 was 24.0 per cent, down from 28.3 per cent the week of Dec. 26, 2021.
Outbreaks
LHSC is reporting the following outbreaks:
University Hospital
U10 Subacute Medicine and Palliative Care, declared Jan. 16, involving five or fewer patient cases
Village of Glendale Crossing, facility-wide, Lambeth, declared Dec. 25
Westmount Gardens, Daisy Unit, declared Jan. 3
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Vaccinations
As of Jan. 8, 88.6 per cent of those aged five and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, up from 88 per cent a week prior, while 82.7 per cent have had two doses, up from 82.1 per cent a week prior.
The percentage of people who’ve received third doses climbed to 31.8 per cent as of Jan. 8 from 25.4 per cent as of Jan. 1. Note that those under 18 are not currently eligible for a third dose.
More than 68 per cent of those aged 70 and older have had a third dose as of Jan. 8.
The Middlesex-London Health Unit says individuals who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms should consider themselves to be positive for COVID-19 and self-isolate.
The health unit has provided information on what to do if you develop symptoms, test positive on a rapid test or PCR test or have been exposed to someone who has tested positive.
Health unit data shows that since Dec. 6, 38.18 per cent of hospitalized cases have involved people who were unvaccinated. Note that unvaccinated residents make up only 11.4 per cent of the region’s five-and-older population as of Jan. 8.
Of the 16 deaths reported in the past six weeks, 10 involved fully vaccinated individuals and six involved unvaccinated individuals.
The latest figures released by the Ontario government Monday morning show there are 3,887 people in hospital with COVID-19, with 578 of them in intensive care.
Southwestern Public Health announced two new pop-up clinics specifically for staff in school, school support or childcare settings as well as children age 5 to 11 and their parents and staff in long-term care or retirement homes.
One clinic will be held at the Ontario Police College on Jan. 21 and the other at the Tillsonburg Community Centre on Jan. 25. Both run from 10 a.m. to 3p.m. Appointments can be booked online through the “targeted populations” priority designation or over the phone at 1-800-922-0096 x 9 on weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Southwestern Public Health reported 26 hospitalizations on Friday, up from 22 a week ago. There were four cases in the ICU, down from seven a week ago.
The test positivity rate for the week of Jan. 2 was 19.5 per cent, down from 24.8 per cent during the week of Dec. 26.
As for cases, SWPH is reporting:
8,942 cases (an increase of 268 from Friday, with two removed due to data cleanup)
974 active cases (a decrease of 155 from Friday)
8,106 resolved cases (an increase of 421 from Friday; note that SWPH clears all cases after 10 days regardless of outcome)
128 deaths (unchanged)
The most recent death was reported Friday and involved a woman in her 80s tied to an outbreak at Valleyview Home. The death was the ninth death reported in the span of four days.
There are active outbreaks at the following long-term homes, retirement homes and hospitals:
Valleyview Nursing Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 23 and involving 16 resident cases, 24 staff cases and one death
Woodingford Lodge, Woodstock, declared Dec. 28 and involving 13 resident cases, 17 staff cases and one death
Tillsonburg Retirement Residence – Tillsonburg, declared Dec. 29 and involving three resident cases
Chartwell Oxford Gardens, Woodstock, declared Dec. 30 and involving 12 resident cases and four staff cases
Caressant Care Bonnie Place Retirement Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 30 and involving 17 resident cases, 11 staff cases, one death and one case under investigation
Caressant Care Bonnie Place Nursing Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 30 and involving 20 resident cases and 13 staff cases
Elgin Manor, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 31 and involving four resident cases and three staff cases
Extendicare, Port Stanley, declared Jan. 2 and involving nine resident cases and 11 staff cases
Terrace Lodge, Aylmer, declared Jan. 2 and involving 13 resident cases, four staff cases and one death
Secord Trails, Ingersoll, declared Jan. 2 and involving 40 resident cases, 17 staff cases and two deaths
Chartwell Aylmer, Aylmer, declared Jan. 2 and involving five resident cases and seven staff cases
Alexandra Hospital, Ingersoll, declared Jan. 3 and involving nine patient cases and three staff cases
Caressant Care Nursing Home – Woodstock, declared Jan. 3 and involving one resident case and 12 staff cases
Maples Nursing Home – Tavistock, declared Jan. 7, involving two resident cases and 11 staff cases
St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital – St. Thomas, declared Jan. 7, involving four patient cases and three staff cases
Arches Transitional Bed Program, Woodstock, declared Jan. 10 and involving 16 resident cases, seven staff cases and one case under investigation
Woodingford Lodge, Tillsonburg, declared Jan. 11 and involving three staff cases
Woodingford Lodge, Ingersoll, declared Jan. 12 and involving three staff cases
Cedarview Living Retirement, Woodstock, declared Jan. 13 and involving four resident cases
Metcalfe Gardens Retirement Home, St. Thomas, declared Jan. 13 and involving 12 resident cases and four staff cases
As of Jan. 12, 76.7 per cent of those aged five and older in the region had received two doses of the vaccine, while 81.8 per cent have had at least one dose.
There are 21 active outbreaks reported by HPPH, including 10 at long-term care or retirement homes:
Braemar Nursing Home, North Huron, declared Jan. 12 and involving three residents and seven staff cases
Hillside Manor, Perth East, declared Dec. 31 and involving four staff cases
Kingsway Lodge, St. Marys, declared Jan. 3 and involving 10 resident cases and 14 staff cases
Knollcrest Lodge, Perth East, declared Jan. 12 and one resident case and involving five staff cases
Queensway Nursing home, Bluewater, declared Dec. 31 and involving one resident case and one staff case
Caressant Care Retirement Home, North Perth, declared Jan. 2 and involving two resident case and two staff cases
Exeter Villa, South Huron, declared Jan. 2 and involving seven resident cases and 13 staff cases
Goderich Place, Goderich, declared Jan. 8 and involving one resident case and four staff cases
Maplewood Manor Retirement Home, Huron East, declared Dec. 30 and involving one resident case and four staff cases
Seaforth Manor Retirement Home, Huron East, declared Jan. 2 and involving four resident cases and three staff cases
HPPH is also reporting an outbreak at Stratford General Hospital, declared Jan. 7, involving one patient and five staff members.
HPPH is reporting 10 outbreaks at congregate living settings but no further details were provided.
As of Jan. 17, 83.9 per cent of residents aged five and older have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while 79.1 per cent are fully vaccinated. Third-dose coverage stands at 45.4 per cent of those five and older, though those under the age of 18 are not eligible for a third dose.
LPH reported 15 active outbreaks as of Monday, including at the following congregate living facilities:
Lambton County Developmental Services in Wyoming, declared Jan. 9 and involving fewer than five resident cases and fewer than five staff/caregiver cases
Huron House Boys Home in Brights Grove, declared Jan. 8 and involving fewer than five residents and five staff/caregivers
Community Living Sarnia-Lambton in Sarnia, declared Jan. 7 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
St. Francis Advocates in Petrolia, declared Jan. 7 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
Community Living Sarnia-Lambton in Sarnia, declared Jan. 6 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
A previous outbreak at Christian Horizons in Sarnia, declared Jan. 10 and involving fewer than five resident cases and fewer than five staff/caregiver cases, is listed as over as of Jan. 14.
There are outbreaks at the following long-term care and retirement homes:
Watford Quality Care in Watford, declared Jan. 5 and involving fewer than five resident cases and fewer than five staff cases
Trillium Villa in Sarnia, declared Jan. 3 and involving 35 residents and 30 staff/caregivers
Marshall Gowland Manor in Sarnia, declared Jan. 1 and involving fewer than five residents and 14 staff/caregivers
Afton Park Place in Sarnia, declared Dec. 31 and involving fewer than five residents and 11 staff/caregivers
Sumac Lodge in Sarnia, declared Dec. 31 and involving 33 resident cases and 26 cases among staff/caregivers
Fiddick’s Nursing Home in Petrolia, declared Dec. 30 and involving 13 residents and 17 staff/caregivers
There are two hospital outbreaks and a jail outbreak. The outbreak at Sarnia Jail in Sarnia was declared Jan. 8 and involves 26 inmates and fewer than five staff members.
One outbreak at Bluewater Health in Sarnia declared Jan. 7 involves eight patients and five staff members. A second outbreak at Bluewater Health was declared Jan. 14 and involves eight patients and five staff members.
There is also an outbreak at an unidentified workplace, declared Jan. 11 involving six cases.
Among those five and older, 81 per cent have had at least one dose of vaccine, 77 per cent have had two doses and 36 per cent have had a third dose. Note that those under 18 are not currently eligible for a third dose.
Residents can book and re-book COVID-19 vaccine appointments or find information on vaccine availability at pharmacies using the health unit’s registration page. People can also contact the vaccine call centre at 226-254-8222.
Those who are able to get vaccinated on short notice are encouraged to sign up for Lambton Public Health’s daily Vaccine Standby List.
Skinstitut Holiday Gift Kits take the stress out of gifting
Toronto, October 31, 2024 – Beauty gifts are at the top of holiday wish lists this year, and Laser Clinics Canada, a leader in advanced beauty treatments and skincare, is taking the pressure out of seasonal shopping. Today, Laser Clincs Canada announces the arrival of its 2024 Holiday Gift Kits, courtesy of Skinstitut, the exclusive skincare line of Laser Clinics Group.
In time for the busy shopping season, the limited-edition Holiday Gifts Kits are available in Laser Clinics locations in the GTA and Ottawa. Clinics are conveniently located in popular shopping centers, including Hillcrest Mall, Square One, CF Sherway Gardens, Scarborough Town Centre, Rideau Centre, Union Station and CF Markville. These limited-edition Kits are available on a first come, first served basis.
“These kits combine our best-selling products, bundled to address the most relevant skin concerns we’re seeing among our clients,” says Christina Ho, Senior Brand & LAM Manager at Laser Clinics Canada. “With several price points available, the kits offer excellent value and suit a variety of gift-giving needs, from those new to cosmeceuticals to those looking to level up their skincare routine. What’s more, these kits are priced with a savings of up to 33 per cent so gift givers can save during the holiday season.
There are two kits to select from, each designed to address key skin concerns and each with a unique theme — Brightening Basics and Hydration Heroes.
Brightening Basics is a mix of everyday essentials for glowing skin for all skin types. The bundle comes in a sleek pink, reusable case and includes three full-sized products: 200ml gentle cleanser, 50ml Moisture Defence (normal skin) and 30ml1% Hyaluronic Complex Serum. The Brightening Basics kit is available at $129, a saving of 33 per cent.
Hydration Heroes is a mix of hydration essentials and active heroes that cater to a wide variety of clients. A perfect stocking stuffer, this bundle includes four deluxe products: Moisture 15 15 ml Defence for normal skin, 10 ml 1% Hyaluronic Complex Serum, 10 ml Retinol Serum and 50 ml Expert Squalane Cleansing Oil. The kit retails at $59.
In addition to the 2024 Holiday Gifts Kits, gift givers can easily add a Laser Clinic Canada gift card to the mix. Offering flexibility, recipients can choose from a wide range of treatments offered by Laser Clinics Canada, or they can expand their collection of exclusive Skinstitut products.
Brightening Basics 2024 Holiday Gift Kit by Skinstitut, available exclusively at Laser Clincs Canada clinics and online at skinstitut.ca.
Hydration Heroes 2024 Holiday Gift Kit by Skinstitut – available exclusively at Laser Clincs Canada clinics and online at skinstitut.ca.
LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?
It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.
Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:
Apple
The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.
For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.
You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.
Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.
Google
Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.
When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.
You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.
There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.
Facebook and Instagram
Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.
When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.
The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.
You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.
TikTok
The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.
Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.
X
It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.
Passwords
Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?
Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.
But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.
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Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.
The Canadian Paediatric Society says doctors should regularly screen children for reading difficulties and dyslexia, calling low literacy a “serious public health concern” that can increase the risk of other problems including anxiety, low self-esteem and behavioural issues, with lifelong consequences.
New guidance issued Wednesday says family doctors, nurses, pediatricians and other medical professionals who care for school-aged kids are in a unique position to help struggling readers access educational and specialty supports, noting that identifying problems early couldhelp kids sooner — when it’s more effective — as well as reveal other possible learning or developmental issues.
The 10 recommendations include regular screening for kids aged four to seven, especially if they belong to groups at higher risk of low literacy, including newcomers to Canada, racialized Canadians and Indigenous Peoples. The society says this can be done in a two-to-three-minute office-based assessment.
Other tips encourage doctors to look for conditions often seen among poor readers such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; to advocate for early literacy training for pediatric and family medicine residents; to liaise with schools on behalf of families seeking help; and to push provincial and territorial education ministries to integrate evidence-based phonics instruction into curriculums, starting in kindergarten.
Dr. Scott McLeod, one of the authors and chair of the society’s mental health and developmental disabilities committee, said a key goal is to catch kids who may be falling through the cracks and to better connect families to resources, including quicker targeted help from schools.
“Collaboration in this area is so key because we need to move away from the silos of: everything educational must exist within the educational portfolio,” McLeod said in an interview from Calgary, where he is a developmental pediatrician at Alberta Children’s Hospital.
“Reading, yes, it’s education, but it’s also health because we know that literacy impacts health. So I think that a statement like this opens the window to say: Yes, parents can come to their health-care provider to get advice, get recommendations, hopefully start a collaboration with school teachers.”
McLeod noted that pediatricians already look for signs of low literacy in young children by way of a commonly used tool known as the Rourke Baby Record, which offers a checklist of key topics, such as nutrition and developmental benchmarks, to cover in a well-child appointment.
But he said questions about reading could be “a standing item” in checkups and he hoped the society’s statement to medical professionals who care for children “enhances their confidence in being a strong advocate for the child” while spurring partnerships with others involved in a child’s life such as teachers and psychologists.
The guidance said pediatricians also play a key role in detecting and monitoring conditions that often coexist with difficulty reading such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, but McLeod noted that getting such specific diagnoses typically involves a referral to a specialist, during which time a child continues to struggle.
He also acknowledged that some schools can be slow to act without a specific diagnosis from a specialist, and even then a child may end up on a wait list for school interventions.
“Evidence-based reading instruction shouldn’t have to wait for some of that access to specialized assessments to occur,” he said.
“My hope is that (by) having an existing statement or document written by the Canadian Paediatric Society … we’re able to skip a few steps or have some of the early interventions present,” he said.
McLeod added that obtaining specific assessments from medical specialists is “definitely beneficial and advantageous” to know where a child is at, “but having that sort of clear, thorough assessment shouldn’t be a barrier to intervention starting.”
McLeod said the society was partly spurred to act by 2022’s “Right to Read Inquiry Report” from the Ontario Human Rights Commission, which made 157 recommendations to address inequities related to reading instruction in that province.
He called the new guidelines “a big reminder” to pediatric providers, family doctors, school teachers and psychologists of the importance of literacy.
“Early identification of reading difficulty can truly change the trajectory of a child’s life.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.
