Eleven more people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials with the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) reported on Tuesday.
The update brings the total number of confirmed cases in the region to 484, of which 337, or about 69 per cent, have recovered, a figure that remained unchanged. The health unit has also reported 48 COVID-19-related deaths.
It’s the largest single-day increase since May 10, when 13 cases were reported.
All of the new cases reported Tuesday were reported in London, with four of the new cases linked to seniors’ facilities, according to the health unit.
One involves a long-term care home staff member, one involves a retirement home resident, and two involve retirement home staff.
Tuesday’s update comes after a long weekend that saw at least seven new cases, two deaths, three new outbreaks declared and five others resolved.
Both deaths over the weekend were linked to long-term care homes, according to the health unit — one case involved a man in his 80s, while the other involved a woman in her 70s.
With Tuesday’s update, London has now seen at least 447 confirmed cases, while Strathroy-Caradoc has seen 20.
Elsewhere, there are seven cases in Middlesex Centre, four in North Middlesex, four in Thames Centre, and one each in Lucan-Biddulph and Southwest Middlesex.
The health unit does not release the locations where recoveries and deaths have been reported.
According to London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), University and Victoria hospitals were treating a combined 19 COVID-19 patients as of midnight Tuesday, with one in intensive care.
Around 32 per cent of all cases reported in London and Middlesex, 157, and more than half of all deaths, 28, have been associated with outbreaks at long-term care and retirement homes in the region.
Ninety-five cases have been reported at long-term care homes, involving 57 residents and 38 staff, while 62 cases have been reported at retirement homes, involving 42 residents and 20 staff. It’s not clear how many cases remain active.
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Twenty-one deaths have been reported at long-term care homes and seven at retirement homes. At least one of the deaths involved a registered nurse.
The facilities account for 15 of the at least 21 outbreaks that have been declared in London and Middlesex since the pandemic began. Eight outbreaks remain active, seven of them at long-term care and retirement homes.
Three new local outbreaks have been declared since the end of last week, including at Country Terrace on Friday, Mount Hope Centre for Long-Term Care (St Mary’s 5th Floor) on Saturday and Waverly Mansion on Monday.
The outbreak at Mount Hope is the second to be declared on St. Mary’s 5th Floor since the pandemic began. The first reported outbreak was declared on April 9 and was resolved April 23.
Outbreaks at five seniors’ facilities have also been declared resolved since Friday, including at Henley Place, Elmwood Place, Kensington Village Retirement, Peoplecare Oak Crossing and Horizon Place.
Horizon Place’s operator, Revera, said in a statement Thursday, a day before the outbreak was declared over, that four residents and two staff had tested positive and that one of the residents had died.
Elsewhere, outbreaks remain active at Sisters of St. Joseph, Meadow Park Care Centre, Earls Court Village, Kensington Village (LTCH) and Grand Wood Park.
Revera also issued an update on Thursday regarding the situation at Grand Wood — the oldest still-active outbreak in London and Middlesex.
Twenty-three residents and seven staff members have tested positive at the retirement home since an outbreak was declared there on March 31, according to the company. Since its previous update on May 5, one additional resident has tested positive.
Four residents have died, according to the update, a figure unchanged from the May 5 update.
The local outbreaks are among at least 395 outbreaks that have been declared at seniors’ facilities across the province since mid-January, of which 301 remain active, according to Public Health Ontario.
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At least 4,235 long-term care residents and 731 retirement home residents have tested positive during the pandemic, while as many as 1,456 long-term care staff and 331 retirement home staff have been infected. Of those, 1,115 long-term care and 160 retirement home residents have died, along with three long-term care staff.
The province announced Tuesday it will launch an independent commission into the province’s long-term care system.
Long-Term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton said in a statement that the commission will start in September, and in the meantime, the government will be finalizing terms of reference, leadership and timelines.
According to the health unit, 125 cases in London and Middlesex, or about 26 per cent, involve health-care workers. Of those cases, 11 are listed as active, according to MLHU data. Eighty-five per cent of the cases involve women.
As of Tuesday, at least 39 staff members with LSHC had tested positive, a figure that has remained unchanged since May 2. It’s unclear how many cases remain active and where within the hospital system the staff members worked.
At least 350 hospital staff members across the province have tested positive since mid-January, according to Public Health Ontario.
Ontario reported 247 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, and 15 more deaths.
That brings the total in the province to 23,384 cases, an increase of 1.9 per cent over the previous day, which is the largest growth rate in a week and a half. The total includes 1,919 deaths and 17,898 cases that have been resolved.
Hospitalizations increased, but the number of people with COVID-19 in intensive care and on ventilators decreased.
The province has extended its emergency orders until May 29, including the closure of bars and restaurants except for takeout and delivery, and limiting gatherings to five people.
However, the government is making a new exemption for drive-in religious gatherings, if vehicles are kept at least two metres apart and only contain members of the same household, and no one leaves their vehicle.
Ontario started the first official stage of its economic reopening Tuesday, giving the green light to retailers, some recreation centres, vehicle dealerships and other businesses to resume.
Included in the reopening are multi-use fields, off-leash dog areas, outdoor picnic sites, benches and shelters in parks. Outdoor playgrounds, splash pads and swimming pools will stay closed for now.
Elgin and Oxford
One person has tested positive for the novel coronavirus and one person has recovered, health officials with Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) reported Tuesday.
The update brings the total number of confirmed cases in the region to 65, of which now 56, or about 86 per cent, have since recovered. The number of deaths remains at four, a figure that has not changed since April 22.
Health officials reported one new case over the holiday long weekend.
There are five active cases in the region as of Tuesday.
Three of them are in Oxford County, including one each in East Zorra-Tavistock, Ingersoll and Woodstock. Two are in Elgin County, including one each in Malahide and St. Thomas.
As of Tuesday, 3,543 tests had been administered in Elgin and Oxford counties. Of those, 180 were awaiting results.
According to the health unit, the test per cent positivity rate stands at 1.9 per cent. The figure has steadily declined as the health unit has conducted more tests, data shows.
Two outbreaks have been declared in the region, both of which are resolved.
Huron and Perth
The number of active cases in Huron and Perth counties remains at zero, health officials there reported Tuesday.
The last two active cases were declared resolved on Friday. No new confirmed cases have been reported since May 1, according to Huron Perth Public Health (HPPH).
So far, 49 cases have been confirmed in Huron and Perth since the start of the pandemic, of which 44 people have recovered — about 89.8 per cent — and five have died.
Four deaths were linked to an outbreak, declared over on May 11, at Greenwood Court, a long-term care facility in Stratford. Six residents and 10 staff tested positive.
Nearly half of the region’s cases, 23, have involved health-care workers.
Three other outbreaks have also been declared over, but two are still listed as active despite there being no active cases.
Two staff have tested positive at Braemar Retirement Centre in North Huron, while one staff member has tested positive at Exeter Villa in South Huron.
The health unit notes that staff members at seniors’ facilities may live in a different jurisdiction, and therefore wouldn’t be included in their regional case tally.
Elsewhere, a total of 12 cases have been reported in Huron County, while 10 have been reported in Perth County.
In St. Marys, one person out of the city’s two reported cases died while one recovered
As of Tuesday, the health unit says 2,447 tests have been administered in Huron and Perth, 69 more than the day before. Of those, 66 were awaiting test results.
Sarnia and Lambton
No new cases, deaths or recoveries were reported by officials with Lambton Public Health (LPH) in its most recent update late Monday.
It comes after a long weekend that saw two deaths reported along with seven new confirmed cases and two new outbreaks.
The total number of cases in the county stands at 225, of which 163 people have recovered — about 72 per cent — and 19 have died.
At least one of the two weekend deaths is linked to an outbreak at Vision Nursing Home, a long-term care home in Sarnia, health unit figures show.
At least 14 residents and 10 staff members have tested positive, an increase of one and five, respectively, since late Thursday. Four residents have died. It’s not clear how many cases are still active. The outbreak was first declared on April 23.
Health officials declared two more outbreaks in the region over the long weekend, both at seniors’ facilities in Sarnia.
The health unit says two residents have tested positive at Village on the St. Clair, a retirement home, while one resident has tested positive at Marshall Gowland Manor, a long-term care home.
The three outbreaks are the only ones currently active. Three other outbreaks have since been resolved.
Health unit figures show 21 per cent of the county’s cases are among long-term care and retirement home residents, while 16 per cent are among Lambton health-care workers.
Of the 15 staff members at Sarnia’s Bluewater Hospital who have tested positive over the course of the pandemic, at least seven had recovered as of Thursday.
As of late Monday, 5,162 test results had been received by the county. It’s not clear how many tests are awaiting results.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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