Hospitalizations down to 7 as Saskatchewan adds 4 new coronavirus cases

The Saskatchewan government gave an update on new coronavirus cases in the province on Wednesday.

Health officials said there were four new cases with the overall total for the province growing to 1,586 since the first case was reported in March.

According to a press release, the new cases are in the north-west and south-west zones with two each.

Seven people are currently in hospital — three are receiving inpatient care and four are in intensive care. This is the lowest hospitalizations have been in the province since July 14, when there were six.

Seven more people have recovered, bringing total recoveries to 1,410.

There are currently 154 active cases in the province, health officials said. Active cases are total cases less recoveries and deaths.

Health officials said investigations completed thus far have found that 104 of the current active cases are in “communal living settings.”

There have been 22 COVID-19-related deaths in Saskatchewan.

More than 960 COVID-19 tests were performed in Saskatchewan on Tuesday, according to a press release.

To date, in excess of 125,180 tests have been carried out in the province.

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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. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

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