Coronavirus hospitalizations slow as Saskatchewan adds 246 infections

For the first time in six days, Saskatchewan’s coronavirus-related deaths were static, according to the provincial government on Friday.

Health officials said there were 246 new cases in the daily update on Friday, with the overall case count for the province growing to 11,475 since the first case was reported in March. The new seven-day average of daily cases is 282.

According to a press release, most of the new cases are located in the Saskatoon zone with 65, while there are 50 in Regina, 34 in north central, 24 in north west, 19 in far north west, 14 in south east, 13 in far north east, nine in north east, seven in south central, six in central east, three in central west as well as one each in far north central and south west.

In the province, 133 people are currently in hospital with COVID-19 — 106 are receiving inpatient care and 27 are in intensive care.

Officials said 387 more people have recovered, bringing total recoveries to 6,853.

There are currently 4,547 active cases in the province, health officials said. Active cases are total cases less recoveries and deaths.

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According to the press release, 3,497 COVID-19 tests were performed on Thursday in Saskatchewan. To date, 379,378 tests have been carried out in the province.

There have been 75 COVID-19-related deaths in Saskatchewan to date.

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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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