One new novel coronavirus case was reported in Saskatchewan on Wednesday, raising the overall total to 647.
Health officials said the newest case is in the far north which has the majority of the province’s 34 active cases — 24.
Other regions with active cases are Regina (four), Saskatoon (three), the north (two) and the south region (one).
Two people are in hospital, both in intensive care in Saskatoon.
No new recoveries were reported, with the total remaining at 602.
There have been 11 deaths in the province due to COVID-19.
News of the latest case comes as the Saskatchewan Health Authority released details on the easing of some visitor restrictions at its facilities, including long-term care homes.
Two healthy individuals can be designated to come into the facility, one at a time, under certain circumstances at long-term care homes.
Health officials said they have also developed guidelines to safely support outdoor visits for long-term care residents with visits not limited to one person at a time.
In health-care facilities, one designated family member/support person and an additional family member/support person can be present at the same time in intensive care and critical care if physical distancing can be maintained.
The SHA said it has also revised guidelines to ensure that it is clear that there can be one family member or support person for inpatient, outpatient, emergency/urgent care patients who have specific challenges.
Here is a breakdown of the total Saskatchewan coronavirus cases by age:
- 95 people are 19 and under
- 230 people are 20 to 39
- 197 are 40 to 59
- 106 people are 60 to 79
- 18 people are 80 and over
Males make up 48 per cent of the cases, females 52 per cent.
Officials said 389 cases are linked to community contact or mass gatherings, 142 are travel-related, 77 have no known exposure and 39 are under investigation by public health.
Saskatchewan has completed 49,132 tests so far for the virus, up 539 from Tuesday.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
Comments