According to MLHU numbers, three of the four new cases involve staff at seniors homes.
Health officials say 462 of the region’s cases have been reported in London, where all four new cases were confirmed.
Story continues below advertisement
Elsewhere, there have been 20 cases in Strathroy-Caradoc, seven in Middlesex Centre, four in North Middlesex, four in Thames Centre and one each in Lucan-Biddulph and Southwest Middlesex.
It’s unclear how many cases remain active in each location.
A chart from the MLHU showing the number of cases in London and Middlesex by reported date, Jan. 24 to May 22, 2020.
Middlesex-London Health Unit
Around 20 per cent of the region’s cases have involved hospitalizations, including 5.61 per cent who have been admitted to intensive care.
At least 17 COVID-19 patients were being treated in University and Victoria hospitals as of midnight Friday, according to London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).
The number of active outbreaks remains unchanged at seven, all of which are at local long-term care and retirement homes.
The most recent outbreak was declared on Wednesday at Henley Place, a long-term care home in London. It’s the second outbreak to be declared at the home, after an outbreak that was active from March 28 until May 17.
A chart from MLHU showing the number of cases in London and Middlesex by association with a long-term care home, retirement home, or other, Jan. 24 to May 23, 2020.
MLHU
Outbreaks remain active at Country Terrace, Mount Hope Centre for Long-Term Care (St. Mary’s 5th Floor), Waverly Mansion, Sisters of St. Joseph, Meadow Park Care Centre and Kensington Village (LTCH).
As of Sunday, 99 cases have been reported in long-term care homes involving 58 residents and 41 staff members, while 65 cases have been reported in retirement homes involving 43 residents and 22 staff members.
Story continues below advertisement
At least 41 staff members at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) have tested positive during the pandemic, a figure that remains unchanged from its previous update on Wednesday. It’s not clear how many cases have resolved and where the staff worked within LHSC.
Just under 11,400 additional tests have been conducted, and around 3,200 cases are under investigation.
Nationally, Canada is seeing 84,068 cases of the new coronavirus after 460 more were confirmed Sunday, the death count rose by 25 to 6,380, and the number of recoveries increased by 331 to 43,415.
Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) says there’s one active outbreak — at a long-term care facility in Ingersoll, where seven staff have been confirmed positive at Secord Trails Care Community as of Sunday morning. The outbreak was declared on May 18.
No residents have tested positive at the facility, according to SWPH.
The outbreak at Secord Trails is one of three to be declared in the region. The other two, at Beattie Manor and Caressant Care Bonnie Place, have since been resolved.
A chart from SWPH showing the per cent positivity rate of coronavirus tests in the region, April 3 to May 23, 2020.
SWPH
Ten cases remain active in SWPH jurisdiction, nine of them in Oxford County, including four in Ingersoll, two in Tillsonburg and Woodstock, and one in East Zorra-Tavistock.
One is located in Elgin County in Malahide, according to the health unit.
As of Sunday, 4,021 tests had been administered in Elgin and Oxford counties. Of those, 230 were awaiting results.
2:26 Coronavirus outbreak: Are you willing to pay a COVID-19 surcharge?
Coronavirus outbreak: Are you willing to pay a COVID-19 surcharge?
Huron and Perth
The number of deaths and recoveries remain the same compared to Saturday, but health officials say one more person has tested positive as of Sunday.
Story continues below advertisement
The region has now seen 51 COVID-19 cases, five deaths and 44 recoveries.
Health officials say the new case involves a resident of North Perth, where there are now a total of four cases, three of which have resolved.
A chart from HPPH showing cumulative totals of COVID-19 cases, deaths, and recoveries from early March to May 24, 2020. The health unit notes the graph uses symptom onset date for cumulative confirmed cases. If the person does not have symptoms, the date of the swab test is used.
HPPH
Of the region’s five deaths, four have been linked to the resolved outbreak at Greenwood Court in Stratford. The home saw 10 staff infections and six resident infections.
Stratford itself has seen 25 of the region’s reported cases.
The health unit says at least 23 health-care workers in the area have tested positive for coronavirus.
As of Sunday, the health unit says 2,744 tests have been administered in Huron and Perth. Of those, 113 were awaiting test results.
One of the cases is linked to a resident at Vision Nursing Home, a long-term care facility in Sarnia, which has had an active outbreak of COVID-19 since April 23.
It’s the fifth day in a row that cases have been confirmed at the facility, which has now seen a total of 21 residents and 19 staff test positive.
Four residents of this facility have also died.
A chart from Lambton Public Health showing the number of confirmed cases in the county by reported date, March 24 to May 23, 2020.
Lambton Public Health
The facility is home to one of three active outbreaks.
The other two, at Marshall Gowland Manor and Village on the St. Clair, were declared active on May 15.
It’s unclear how many cases linked to the three outbreaks remain active.
Three other outbreaks at Landmark Village, Lambton Meadowview Villa and Sumac Lodge have since been declared over.
8:38 Coronavirus outbreak: As long as profit is being made in senior care, that care will be restricted: Unifor president
Coronavirus outbreak: As long as profit is being made in senior care, that care will be restricted: Unifor president
Health unit figures show long-term care and retirement home residents make up nearly a quarter of all cases, 22 per cent, while health-care workers make up 17 per cent.
Sarnia’s Bluewater Health was treating four confirmed COVID-19 patients as of Sunday morning — one less from Saturday, in addition to 14 patients who were suspected positive or awaiting tests — six more compared to the day before.
Story continues below advertisement
— With files from Global News’ Ryan Rocca and Matthew Trevithick
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.
