The COVID-19 pandemic continues to create stress and anxiety for many Canadians, particularly those who do not have ready access to their regular support networks. Through the Wellness Together Canada online portal, people of all ages across the country can access immediate, free and confidential mental health and substance use supports, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. PocketWell, a free companion app to the WTC online portal, provides another way to help Canadians access online mental health and substance use resources, and measure and track aspects of their mental well-being.
/CNW/ – This week, Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) updated guidance on mRNA vaccination for children aged 5-11 years on Tuesday, and for adolescents aged 12 to 17 years, today. Although, children and adolescents remain at low risk of severe outcomes compared to older individuals, substantially higher rates of Omicron infection have resulted in greater numbers of children with COVID-19 requiring hospitalization than previously. Hence, NACI’s latest advice underscores important opportunities for enhancing protection in these age groups. Specifically, for those without contraindications to the vaccines:
NACI now strongly recommends that children aged 5 to 11 years receive a complete two-dose primary series of the Pfizer 10 mcg pediatric mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, with at least 8 weeks between the 1st and 2nd dose, while also recommending a 3rd dose for moderately to severely immunocompromised children in this age group.
For adolescents aged 12 to 17 years, NACI continues to strongly recommend a complete primary series of authorised mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, including a 3rd dose for those who are moderately to severely immunocompromised.
In addition, for adolescents who are at high risk due to biological and/or social risk factors, NACI now recommends that a booster dose of an authorized mRNA COVID-19 vaccine may be offered at least 6 months after the completion of a primary COVID-19 vaccine series.
Up-to-date vaccination continues to be recommended for all eligible people, to provide better protection from severe outcomes, including due to Omicron. This includes a complete primary series of authorised COVID-19 vaccines and, as eligible, a booster dose of either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna SpikeVax mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. This is particularly important for parents, guardians and close contacts, to help protect children and adolescents who can’t be vaccinated or have conditions that place them at risk for severe outcomes.
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) continues to monitor COVID-19 epidemiological indicators to quickly detect, understand and communicate emerging issues of concern. The following is a brief summary with the latest national numbers and trends.
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 2,998,329 cases of COVID-19 and 33,373 deaths reported in Canada. These cumulative numbers tell us about the overall burden of COVID-19 illness to date, while the number of active cases, now at 232,728, and 7-day moving averages indicate current disease activity and severity trends. As very high infection rates continue to challenge or exceed testing capacity, reported case numbers underestimate the true number infections. Hence, a range of other indicators, from laboratory test positivity to daily numbers of people in hospitals and critical care continue to be important for monitoring trends.
Although daily reported cases remain at record high levels, multiple indicators suggest infections have peaked at the national level, including daily case counts, test positivity, Rt (or effective reproduction number), and wastewater surveillance trends. During the latest 7 day period (Jan 21-27, 2022), an average of 18,497 new cases were reported daily across Canada. While this is a 28% decrease compared to the week prior, infection rates remain elevated and continue to increase in some jurisdictions. Laboratories across Canada continue to test at a very high level. During the latest 7-day period (Jan 19-25, 2022), laboratory test positivity was 19%, indicating continued widespread community transmission.
The ongoing high volume of cases is placing a heavy strain on the healthcare system, both because of increased hospital admissions as well as high numbers of illness and need for isolation among health care workers. The latest provincial and territorial data show that an average of 10,766 people with COVID-19 were being treated in hospitals each day during the most recent 7-day period (Jan 21-27, 2022), which is 7% higher than last week and exceeds all previous peaks. This includes, on average, 1,216 people who were being treated in intensive care units (ICU) daily, which is 6% higher than last week and an average of 164 deaths were reported daily (Jan 21-27, 2022). Keeping infection rates down remains key to mitigating the rise in severe illness trends as much as possible over the coming weeks.
Immunization for all those who are eligible, but are yet to receive their primary series, remains a top priority. As of January 27, 2022, provinces and territories have administered over 76 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. The latest provincial and territorial data indicate that over 78% of the total population are now fully vaccinated. Age-specific vaccine coverage data, as of January 22, 2022, show that over 88% of people 12 years or older have at least one dose and over 83% are fully vaccinated. Among children aged 5-11 years of age, who have more recently become eligible for vaccination, 53% have at least one dose.
All told, over 6.3 million eligible Canadians need one or more doses to complete their primary series and many others are eligible to get a booster dose to help improve protection that may have decreased since their second dose. Moreover, there is accumulating evidence that a booster dose results in better protection against severe illness from Omicron. As of January 27, over 14 million third doses have been administered to date. National data as of January 22, 2022 indicate that 75%-77% of seniors aged 70 years or older and 50%-64% of 50-69 year olds have received an additional dose.
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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