Health
Ontario reports 412 new COVID-19 cases as upward trend continues – CBC.ca
Ontario reported 412 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, continuing an upward trend and pushing the total number of cases in the province to more than 25,000 since the pandemic began.
Of the total number, 76.5 per cent, or 19,146, are resolved.
The new numbers are a drop after Friday’s 441 new cases, which was the most reported on a single day since May 8. However, the five-day rolling average of new cases has been trending steadily upward since May 12.
Meanwhile, the province fell short of its testing target for the sixth day in a row on Friday, processing 11,028 tests out of a 16,000 daily benchmark.
The province reported a total of 2,048 deaths as of Saturday, 62.6 per cent of which are of residents in long-term care homes.
A count by CBC News, compiled from regional public health units, puts the current toll at at least 2,113 deaths.
The data comes at the start of a warm weekend, the first after Ontario officially began the first phase of its reopening.
Testing begins for asymptomatic health-care workers
New testing regulations took effect on Saturday, with asymptomatic front-line health-care workers being tested across the province.
The province will also begin a second round of testing in long-term care homes, which have been hardest hit by COVID-19.As criticism mounts about the number of tests being done in Ontario, Ford appealed to anyone with symptoms on Friday to visit a COVID-19 assessment centre.
Friday was the sixth straight day that the province has failed to meet its 16,000 test target. Its capacity is 20,000 tests. The backlog of tests waiting to be processed has grown to 5,871.
Hospital official criticizes lack of testing strategy
Dr. Camille Lemieux, the medical director of Toronto Western Hospital’s COVID assessment centre, said she hasn’t seen much of a testing strategy from the province.
Lemieux said broad-based testing should be accessible to everyone, but that’s not what is actually happening.
The province started the pandemic with assessment centres that had very restrictive rules to get tested, which she said has led many in the public to believe that it’s still difficult to get a test.
Ford said the province plans to launch an advertising campaign aimed at raising awareness that tests are available.
Women account for 56.5% of cases
As of Saturday’s report, there are 961 people in hospital, of which 153 were in intensive care. Of those patients, 120 were on a ventilator.
A total of 292 outbreaks have been reported in long-term care homes during the pandemic, up five from the previous day’s total.
There are 212 outbreaks in long-term care homes as well as 79 outbreaks in retirement homes and 51 outbreaks in hospitals, the province said.
Women account for more than half the total cases, at 56.5 per cent, while 42.7 per cent of cases are among males.
The 20 to 39 age range makes up 24.8 per cent of all confirmed cases, with 3.1 of cases among people ages 19 and under. Some 30.5 per cent of total confirmed cases in the province have been in people aged 40 to 59.
People aged 60 to 79 account for 20.8 per cent of cases and those over 80 account for 20.7 per cent of cases.
The Greater Toronto Area continues to account for a majority of cases, 64.3 per cent, in Ontario.
Protesters call for an end to shutdown
Meanwhile, about 200 people gathered again at Queen’s Park on Saturday to protest against provincial emergency orders in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
One person held a sign saying the virus is a hoax, while the message “COVID is a lie” was painted on a truck. Other protesters held signs bearing messages such as “the lockdown is unlawful” and “my body my choice no vaccine.”
Premier Doug Ford has previously blasted such anti-lockdown demonstrations, calling protesters “a bunch of yahoos,” selfish and irresponsible.
The premier was angered earlier this month when protesters turned a Canadian flag upside down during their demonstration.
Dentists get new guidelines during COVID-19 recovery
Meanwhile, Ontario’s dentists have a new set of guidelines on how to operate during this phase of COVID-19 recovery. The Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario released the document on Friday afternoon.
Dentists had previously only been allowed to practice emergency or urgent care on patients in-person, but can now offer other essential services with enhanced precautions.
The guidelines say it’s particularly difficult to protect against COVID-19 in dentistry because many procedures generate droplets and aerosols.
The college says dentists must use N95 respirators, gloves, eye protection, face shields and protective gowns when performing procedures that generate aerosols.
Health
RCMP warn about benzodiazepine-laced fentanyl tied to overdose in Alberta – Edmonton Journal
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Grande Prairie RCMP issued a warning Friday after it was revealed fentanyl linked to a deadly overdose was mixed with a chemical that doesn’t respond to naloxone treatment.
The drugs were initially seized on Feb. 28 after a fatal overdose, and this week, Health Canada reported back to Mounties that the fentanyl had been mixed with Bromazolam, which is a benzodiazepine.
Article content
Mounties say this is the first recorded instance of Bromazolam in Alberta. The drug has previously been linked to nine fatal overdoses in New Brunswick in 2022.
The pills seized in Alberta were oval-shaped and stamped with “20” and “SS,” though Mounties say it can come in other forms.
Naloxone treatment, given in many cases of opioid toxicity, is not effective in reversing the effects of Bromazalam, Mounties said, and therefore, any fentanyl mixed with the benzodiazepine “would see a reduced effectiveness of naloxone, requiring the use of additional doses and may still result in a fatality.”
From January to November of last year, there were 1,706 opioid-related deaths in Alberta, and 57 linked to benzodiazepine, up from 1,375 and 43, respectively, in 2022.
Mounties say officers responded to about 1,100 opioid-related calls for service, last year with a third of those proving fatal. RCMP officers also used naloxone 67 times while in the field, a jump of nearly a third over the previous year.
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Health
CFIA continues surveillance for HPAI in cattle, while sticking with original name for disease – RealAgriculture
The Canada Food Inspection Agency will continue to refer to highly pathogenic avian influenza in cattle as HPAI in cattle, and not refer to it as bovine influenza A virus (BIAV), as suggested by the American Association of Bovine Practitioners earlier this month.
Dr. Martin Appelt, senior director for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, in the interview below, says at this time Canada will stick with “HPAI in cattle” when referencing the disease that’s been confirmed in dairy cattle in multiple states in the U.S.
The CFIA’s naming policy is consistent with the agency’s U.S. counterparts’, as the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has also said it will continue referring to it as HPAI or H5N1.
Appelt explains how the CFIA is learning from the U.S. experience to-date, and how it is working with veterinarians across Canada to stay vigilant for signs of the disease in dairy and beef cattle.
As of April 19, there has not been a confirmed case of HPAI in cattle in Canada. Appelt says it’s too soon to say if an eventual positive case will significantly restrict animal movement, as is the case with positive poultry cases.
This is a major concern for the cattle industry, as beef cattle especially move north and south across the U.S. border by the thousands. Appelt says that CFIA will address an infection in each species differently in conjunction with how the disease is spread and the threat to neighbouring farms or livestock.
Currently, provincial dairy organizations have advised producers to postpone any non-essential tours of dairy barns, as a precaution, in addition to other biosecurity measures to reduce the risk of cattle contracting HPAI.
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Health
Toronto reports 2 more measles cases. Use our tool to check the spread in Canada – Toronto Star
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Canada has seen a concerning rise in measles cases in the first months of 2024.
By the third week of March, the country had already recorded more than three times the number of cases as all of last year. Canada had just 12 cases of measles in 2023, up from three in 2022.
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