Nova Scotia reported 511 new cases of COVID-19 and said it will be adding additional clinics to deliver booster doses more widely.
Starting on Monday, the booking for booster doses will open to people age 30 and older.
Premier Tim Houston said the province will be shifting its focus on delivering booster doses as cases remain high from Omicron. This means additional clinics will be opening.
The following additions will take place over the next couple of weeks to expand capacity, the province has announced:
- Community vaccine clinic in Central zone starting January 6 at the Halifax Forum. Appointments will go live early next week. Additional clinics are being explored in other health zones.
- Hybrid testing/vaccine clinics using existing Primary Assessment Centre locations in Northern, Eastern and Western Zones by mid-January. Testing and vaccine appointments will be provided at different times of day.
- Drop-in mobile outreach clinics will also be deployed to increase vaccination capacity where needed.
Vaccines will also be delivered through a clinic at the IWK Health Centre, through various physician clinics and to healthcare workers via Nova Scotia Health clinics.
More vaccine shipments are also arriving in the month of January.
READ MORE: COVID-19: Nova Scotia announces jump in hospitalizations, 586 new cases
“About 19,000 Nova Scotians have already had their booster or have their appointment…many of them are the most vulnerable, including long-term care, but it leaves a lot of people,” Houston said at a COVID-19 briefing Thursday.
He said the challenge right now is that there aren’t enough healthcare professionals to get vaccines in arms.
As a result, the province is working with Nova Scotia Health to enlist the services of anyone who is able to help administer vaccine, including existing and retired healthcare professionals.
When it comes to booster doses, Dr. Robert Strang, the province’s top doctor, said at Thursday’s briefing that some studies are showing that Moderna is slightly more effective.
But due to limited shipments of Pfizer vaccines due to a global shortage, Strang said the province will prioritize the Pfizer vaccine for people under 30.
“While it’s still rare, we know that Moderna vaccine has a somewhat higher risk of myocarditis and pericarditis…so we’re only recommending Pfizer for those 30 and under,” said Pfizer.
New cases and the Omicron variant
Nova Scotia reported 522 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19, which includes 11 duplicate cases for a total 511 new cases.
There are 331 cases in Central Zone, 56 cases in Eastern Zone, 59 cases in Northern Zone and 65 cases in Western Zone.
Strang said that he’s optimistic the relatively consistent case numbers in the last number of days show a levelling off of COVD-19 activity.
“Hopefully soon we’ll be starting to see a downward trend,” said Strang.
Even though the Omicron variant has been characterized as generally causing milder illness, Strang said it is yet unclear if that’s the nature of the virus itself, if it’s because of the ongoing vaccine protection or if it’s because most cases are in young adults.
As of Thursday, there are an estimated 5,106 active cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia. Of those, 25 people are in hospital, including 3 in ICU, which Strang said shows that hospitalization numbers are climbing modestly.
He said the province no longer needs to have public health manage every single case of the Omicron variant because most of the people infected by it are experiencing mild illness.
“We need to focus our efforts on our most vulnerable groups and settings,” said Strang. “We need to pay attention to our hospitalization numbers and those who are getting severely ill far more than daily case numbers.”
He added that at this point the province doesn’t need to continue counting every case and having accurate daily case numbers and rather look at trends and any indicators of severe illness.
“This is why are moving to more self-management…just because public health isn’t doing any contact tracing doesn’t mean that we’re stepping away…we’re asking Nova Scotians to take on more of the role themselves,” Strang said.
Earlier this week, Strang said that people don’t need to report a positive rapid test result to public health, which he said was incorrect on his part.
“We are encouraging people to notify public health so they can provide information about the next steps.”
Long-term care facilities, hospitals
The province reported Thursday four new outbreaks in long-term care facilities.
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Four staff members have tested positive at the Sagewood Continuing Care Facility in Lower Sackville. Five staff members and one resident have tested positive at the Kings Regional Rehabilitation Centre in Waterville.
Four staff members and one resident have tested positive at Melville Gardens in Halifax. Two residents have tested positive at New Vision in South Berwick, with one in hospital.
The province also reported that one new case has been confirmed at Parkstone Enhanced Care in Halifax. A total of two residents and three staff members at the facility have tested positive. No one is in hospital.
The Nova Scotia Health Authority reported outbreaks at the Victoria General site of the QEII Health Sciences Center and New Waterford Heights.
“Currently, there are a very low number of patients impacted (less than five at each facility), and all patients are being closely monitored and other Infection Prevention and Control measures are being put in place,” the province said in a release.
An additional three cases are being reported at a ward at the Halifax Infirmary site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre, for a total of nine cases. There are no new cases related to the outbreak at St. Martha’s Regional Hospital in Antigonish.
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