With a seven-day average of 25 new COVID-19 cases per day, the city’s medical officer of health is urging Hamiltonians to keep their close contacts to just their immediate households.
Dr. Elizabeth Richardson says the city is experiencing the highest number of cases per day ever seen, including when Hamilton was experiencing the first wave of the coronavirus. With the numbers heading in the wrong direction, Richardson says it’s important to keep the number of close contacts small.
“If you can limit it to your household or to one other person that you’re helping to support who happens to live as a single person in the community, then that’s ideal in terms of what you do,” Richardson said.
In mid-June, Public Health Ontario introduced its social circle guidelines, which allowed households to begin gradually interacting with others outside of a family with no more than a total of 10 interacting without physical distancing.
However, the city’s medical officer is now suggesting that residents keep close contacts within just one household and limiting outside interactions.
“So really, if we’re thinking about it, it’s just your household that you should be having any kind of close contact with,” says Richardson, who also suggests people once again reconsider some activities as they did during the first wave of the pandemic.
“Do you need to get out and do those things today? Does it need to happen or is it something that you can do in another way?”
The plea was echoed by Mayor Fred Eisenberger during the city’s COVID-19 update on Tuesday who characterized the city’s recent uptick in case numbers as “concerning.”
Despite all the work the city’s emergency operations centre has done with closures and safety messaging since March, the mayor did express some concern over future case numbers following the recent long weekend.
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“We are more prepared. That’s true. But, you know, these case numbers are climbing and the impacts of whatever might have occurred over Thanksgiving could very well lead to higher numbers as well.”
The impact of potential Hamilton Thanksgiving-related cases may not be known for more than a week as public health continues to struggle with a backlog in test results.
Richardson says test samples are typically sent to regional labs at Hamilton Health Sciences and St. Joseph’s Hospital, however with the recent backlog, some samples have been “farmed out” to whatever other labs across the province can take on the work.
“We are seeing that there are delays locally that we have tests now coming in about eight days behind,” said Richardson.
“We have delays as long as that, but certainly we do have some others that are coming in more quickly as well. So it’s kind of a provincewide phenomenon at this point.”
Another challenge for the city has been contact tracing. Public health is hoping to notify those who may have come in close proximity to a COVID-19 case within 48 hours.
“It’s very much with the number of cases we have, the number of contacts that they have in this new environment, it is a challenge to keep up with contact tracing,” Richardson said.
Hamilton reports 29 new COVID-19 cases, new outbreak at Stoney Creek baby store
Hamilton public health reported 29 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, pushing the city’s total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began to 1,436.
Officials say 42 per cent (102) of the city’s 243 new coronavirus cases in the last 10 days have been among people under the age of 30.
Hamilton has 193 active cases as of Oct. 14.
Downtown gym SPINCO now has 69 cases tied to its COVID-19 outbreak – 46 cases that attended the gym and 23 secondary cases who made contact with gym members.
The city has six outbreaks, with the most recent declared at Kushies baby clothing and toy store in Stoney Creek. The retail outlet is reporting COVID-19 cases among three staff members.
There are also outbreaks involving staff members at Shannen Koostachin Elementary School and Sacred Heart of Jesus Elementary School.
The Salvation Army Lawson Ministries on Main Street East and Dundurn Place Care Centre in downtown are also in the middle of coronavirus outbreaks.
Halton Region reports 34 new COVID-19 cases, one new death
Public Health Halton reported 34 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, with Burlington reporting 15 new cases and Milton reporting 11.
The region has had 1,674 cases since the pandemic began. Public health says there are 210 active cases as of Oct. 14. Burlington has 95 active cases and a total of 440 coronavirus cases since March.
The region reported another death at the Village of Tansley Woods Retirement Home on Monday night. In a release, the operator, Schlegel Village, said the deceased was a resident and that two “dedicated external care providers” had tested positive for the virus.
Both the long-term care and the retirement home portions of the facility now have outbreaks. The outbreaks at Tansley Woods have accounted for 23 total cases in 15 residents, eight staff members and three other people connected to the home. Three people have now died since the start of the first outbreak at the home on Oct. 3.
The region has a total of four outbreaks, which include three other long-term care homes (Creek Way Village and Cama Woodlands in Burlington and Revera Northridge in Oakville).
Public Health Halton says 48.9 per cent (161) of its 329 cases in the last 10 days were among residents under the age of 39. Burlington accounts for 145 of those cases with 54 (37.2 per cent) under the age of 39.
Niagara Region reports 12 new COVID-19 case
Niagara public health reported 12 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the region’s total number of cases to 1,226 since the pandemic began.
There are currently 87 active cases as of Oct. 14.
The region has six outbreaks connected to the coronavirus, which includes five retirement homes (Ina Grafton Gage Home and Pioneer Elder Care in St. Catharines, Shalom Gardens in Grimsby, The Meadows of Dorchester and Lundy Manor in Niagara Falls) and one nursing home (Millennium Trail Manor in Niagara Falls).
Since the pandemic was declared, 42.5 per cent (521) of the region’s 1,226 cases have occurred in people under the age of 39.
Haldimand-Norfolk reports no new COVID-19 cases
The Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit (HNHU) reported two new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. The region has an overall total of 500 lab-confirmed positive cases.
Officials say there are eight active cases as of Oct. 14.
Public health says 33.4 per cent (167) of all cases in the region involve people between the ages of 20 and 39.
The region has one outbreak tied to two staff members at the Caressant Care long-term care home in Courtland.
Brant County reports three new COVID-19 cases
Brant County’s health unit reported three new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday. The region has a total of 209 confirmed cases since the pandemic began.
There are 10 active cases as of Oct. 14.
Public health says 37.32 per cent (77) of all cases in the county involve people between the ages of 20 and 39.
The region has no institutional outbreaks at long-term care or retirement homes.
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