The president and CEO of Kington Health Sciences Centre, Dr. David Pichora, says COVID-19-related hospital admissions are trending downward in the region as the presence of the Delta variant dwindles and is replaced by Omicron.
“Our numbers are down from where they were two or three weeks ago. So we do have more ICU capacity. The ER has been quieter,” Pichora said.
But while the spread of Omicron hasn’t led to more hospital visits, it is spreading at a much faster pace.
“It’s becoming obvious that people are spreading the virus while they’re still incubating the virus,” Pichora said. “So even before they might get symptoms, they’re already spreading it.”
The good news is it seems so far that the Omicron variant isn’t as harmful. Currently, only one of Kingston’s 26 hospitalizations is from the Omicron variant, which was found in an elderly person.
Queen’s epidemiologist Dr. Gerald Evans agrees with the notion that symptoms of Omicron aren’t as strong as previous variants but is only cautiously optimistic because the variant has mostly only affected the 18-to-29 age group, which is less likely to become seriously ill.
Evans says that’s because that age group is most likely to lead a lifestyle that promotes the spread of germs.
“When you’re between 18 and 29, that’s when you’re socializing the most. That’s when you actually have the most social contacts in your life,” Evans said.
He adds that if the younger population is gathering and consuming alcohol, they’re less likely to take precautions that would help stop the spread of the virus.
“People remove their masks, they’re consuming alcohol, and alcohol tends to make you a little less concerned about, you know, worrisome things. And those can all help to contribute to the opportunities for transmission to occur,” he said.
The real test, he says, is a few days after the holidays, as the Omicron variant is transmissible within a few days and could easily be spread over holiday gatherings and eventually make its way into the older age categories.
“When we go into the holiday season, there’s lots more opportunity for those young adults to potentially mix with older relatives to older friends, et cetera,” Evans said. “And that could help to, unfortunately, accelerate that movement of the virus into those older age groups. So that’ll be what we’ll have to watch for.”
He says the true effect of Omicron over the holidays could start to show sometime between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
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