Jump to: Hospitalizations – Outbreaks – Schools – Vaccinations and testing – Ontario – Elgin and Oxford – Huron and Perth – Sarnia and Lambton
London Health Sciences Centre is caring for 63 inpatients with COVID-19, up from 59 the day before. Of those, 10 are in adult critical care — a figure unchanged from Tuesday.
There are five or fewer inpatients with COVID-19 in Children’s Hospital with zero in pediatric critical care, steady from Tuesday.
An LHSC spokesperson told Global News that the figures currently include all those in hospital with COVID-19, regardless of whether that was the reason for admission. LHSC is working to make that data available “in the near future.”
Meanwhile, the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) reported a total of 307 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday and no deaths.
However, daily case counts are no longer considered a reliable reflection of COVID-19 activity in the region as capacity issues have resulted in a change in strategy that limits testing to those who work in high-risk settings or in hospitals. Reduced testing means true case counts are higher than what is recorded.
The most recent death was reported Dec. 30 and involved a man in his 70s who was not associated with a long-term care or retirement home, the health unit said. Further details were not provided, but MLHU data suggested the individual was fully vaccinated.
In total, there have been 22,099 confirmed cases since the onset of the pandemic, including 4,134 active cases (a decrease of 87), 17,706 resolved cases (an increase of 402) and 259 deaths (unchanged).
Hospitalizations
As mentioned, London Health Sciences Centre is caring for 63 inpatients with COVID-19, with 10 in adult critical care.
There are five or fewer inpatients with COVID-19 in Children’s Hospital and zero in pediatric critical care, unchanged from Tuesday.
LHSC is reporting that 261 of its staff members currently have COVID-19, up from 210 the day before.
There are currently two active outbreaks at LHSC as of Jan. 4. An outbreak at University Hospital in 7IP Clinical Neurosciences involves five or fewer patients and five or fewer staff members. An outbreak at Victoria Hospital’s B7-200 Adult Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit involves five or fewer patients but 15 staff members.
St. Joseph’s Health Care London is reporting 70 cases among staff, none of which are outbreak-related.
Among patients or residents, there are 19 outbreak-related cases at Parkwood Institute Main Building and six outbreak-related cases at Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care. Both the staff and patient figures are unchanged from Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Global News reported that St. Joseph’s had 95 cases among staff. In fact, there were 70 cases among staff, none of which were outbreak-related, and 25 among patients, all of which were outbreak-related. Global News regrets this error.
Institutional outbreaks
As of Wednesday, outbreaks are active at the following long-term care homes, retirement homes or hospitals:
- Arbor Trace Alzheimer’s Special Care Centre, facility-wide, declared Jan. 4
- Babcock Community Care Centre, facility-wide, declared Dec. 31
- Chartwell London, Magnolia and Pinebrook areas, declared Dec. 18
- Chartwell Parkhill, Countryside Unit, declared Jan. 1
- Country Terrace, Nottinghill Unit, declared Dec. 28
- Dearness Home, in 5E, 5W, 4E, Oakdale and 2W, declared Dec. 29
- Earls Court Village, first and third floors, declared Jan. 2
- Elmwood Place, facility-wide, declared Dec. 27
- Extendicare, second and third floors, declared Dec. 24
- Henley Place LTC Residence, in Medway, Victoria and Fanshawe units, declared Dec. 29
- Kensington Village, first floor, declared Jan. 4
- Kensington Village Retirement, Highbury area, declared Jan. 4
- LHSC – University Hospital, 7IP Neurosciences, declared Jan. 1
- LHSC – Victoria Hospital, PICU, declared Dec. 31
- Longworth Retirement Residence, second floor, declared Dec. 25
- McCormick Home, Memory Lane and Evergreen units, declared Dec. 14
- McGarrell Place, facility-wide, declared Jan. 1
- Meadow Park Care Centre, facility-wide, declared Jan. 1
- Middlesex Terrace, third floor, declared Dec. 26
- Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care, SM1 and MV5, declared Dec. 25
- Oakcrossing Retirement Living, facility-wide, declared Jan. 4
- Parkwood Institute Main Building, 3 Kent/Essex, declared Dec. 31
- Parkwood Institute Main Building, 3A-East, declared Dec. 23
- Parkwood Institute Main Building, 4 Bruce Elgin, declared Jan. 3
- Peoplecare Oak Crossing, White Pine, declared Dec. 31
- Sisters of St. Joseph, facility-wide, declared Dec. 24
- Village of Glendale Crossing, facility-wide, Lambeth, declared Dec. 25
- Westmount Gardens, Daisy Unit, declared Jan. 3
There are no active outbreaks at elementary or secondary schools, child-care or early years centres or post-secondary institutions in the MLHU’s jurisdiction as of Wednesday.
Schools and child care
No new COVID-19 cases have been reported involving schools and none were active as of Wednesday.
Students have been out of class for the winter break and were initially supposed to return to in-person classes Wednesday but the province announced on Monday that “all publicly funded and private schools will move to remote learning starting Jan. 5 until at least Jan. 17.”
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A total of 600 cases have been reported at local elementary and secondary schools since the start of the school year in September. In comparison, 351 were reported during the 12 months from September 2020 to August 2021.
Vaccinations and testing
As of the week of Dec. 12, the most recent data available, the test positivity rate in Middlesex-London was 6.7 per cent.
At the end of December, in response to “the rapidly spreading and highly transmissible Omicron variant,” the province announced new eligibility requirements for publicly-funded PCR testing.
The Middlesex-London Health Unit says individuals with COVID-19 symptoms should consider themselves to be positive for COVID-19 and self-isolate.
The health unit has provided information on what to do if you develop symptoms, test positive on a rapid test or PCR test or have been exposed to someone who has tested positive.
Health unit data shows 45.45 per cent of hospitalized cases have involved people who were unvaccinated and 47.27 per cent involved fully vaccinated individuals. The rest involve those who were partially vaccinated or not yet protected by vaccination. Note that unvaccinated residents make up only 12 per cent of the region’s five-and-older population as of Jan. 1.
As of Jan. 1, 88.0 per cent of those five and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 82.3 per cent are fully vaccinated. Those figures are up from 87.6 per cent and 82.1 per cent, respectively, as of Dec. 25.
As for boosters, 25.4 per cent of those five and older have had a third dose as of Jan. 1.
On the health unit’s website, residents can find information on pop-up clinics, mass vaccination clinics and pharmacies, as well as guidance for anyone vaccinated outside of the province or country, transportation support for those in need and more.
Ontario
Ontario reported 11,582 COVID cases on Wednesday, as hospitalizations continue to soar.
Ontario reported 2,081 people in hospital wards with COVID-19 (up by 791 from the previous day) with 288 patients in intensive care units (up by 22).
Last Wednesday, there were 726 hospitalizations with 190 in ICUs.
For comparison, during the pandemic’s third wave peak in April 2021 – the worst wave for hospitalizations thus far – the province saw almost 2,400 patients in hospital wards and as many as 900 patients in ICUs with COVID among a population that was vastly unvaccinated.
Ontario’s current fourth wave is approaching the third wave peak for hospitalizations, but is currently further behind in ICUs admissions.
In terms of vaccination status, for those in general hospital wards with COVID, 417 were unvaccinated, 108 were partially vaccinated and 1,073 were fully vaccinated. For patients in ICUs, 109 were unvaccinated while 14 were partially vaccinated and 86 were fully vaccinated.
Elgin and Oxford
Southwestern Public Health reported 18 patients in hospital with COVID-19, up from 15 the day before. Of those, five are in ICU, unchanged from Tuesday.
SWPH reported two deaths on Wednesday, involving a man in his 80s from Oxford County and a woman in her 50s from St. Thomas. The health unit also reported the death of a man in his 70s from Elgin County on Tuesday.
As for cases, SWPH is reporting:
- 7,828 cases (an increase of 103)
- 1,379 active cases (increase of 22)
- 6,311 resolved cases (an increase of 79, note that SWPH clears all cases after 10 days regardless of outcome)
- 116 deaths (an increase of two)
There are active outbreaks at the following long-term homes, retirement homes and hospitals:
- Valleyview Nursing Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 23 and involving nine resident cases and 13 staff cases
- Woodingford Lodge, Woodstock, declared Dec. 28 and involving three resident cases and five staff cases
- Chartwell Oxford Gardens, Woodstock, declared Dec. 30 and involving four resident cases
- Caressant Care Bonnie Place Retirement Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 30 and involving two resident cases
- Caressant Care Bonnie Place Nursing Home, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 30 and involving three staff cases
- Elgin Manor, St. Thomas, declared Dec. 31 and involving four resident cases and one staff case
- Beattie Manor Retirement Residence, Wardsville, declared Dec. 31 and involving one resident case
- Extendicare, Port Stanley, declared Jan. 2 and involving two resident cases and three staff cases
- Secord Trails, Ingersoll, declared Jan. 2 and involving seven resident cases
- Chartwell Aylmer, Aylmer, declared Jan. 2 and involving four staff cases
- Alexandra Hospital, Ingersoll, declared Jan. 3 and involving three resident cases
- Caressant Care Nursing Home – Woodstock, declared Jan. 3 and involving one resident case and three staff cases
There are currently no active outbreaks at local schools. More information on school cases can be found on the websites of the Thames Valley District School Board and the London District Catholic School Board.
Roughly 6.8 per cent of tests in the region were coming back positive as of the week of Dec. 12.
As of Jan. 4, 76.3 per cent of those aged five and older in the region had received two doses of the vaccine, while 81.3 per cent have had at least one dose.
Walk-in vaccination clinics will be held on Jan. 6 in Port Burwell from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Bayham Township Fire Station, 55451 Nova Scotia Line and on Jan. 13 in Straffordville from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Straffordville Community Centre at 56169 Heritage Line.
Further information on where and how to get vaccinated can be found on the health unit’s website.
The health unit encouraged people to join its Same Day Vaccination List, which offers any leftover doses due to cancellations or no-shows.
Huron and Perth
Huron Perth Public Health is reporting seven patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19, which includes cases where the infection has since resolved, down from eight on Tuesday. As of Wednesday, there were four active cases hospitalized, down from six Tuesday.
The number of health-care workers with active COVID-19 infections climbed to 15, up from 13 on Tuesday.
In total, HPPH reported:
- 3,951 total cases (an increase of 61)
- 944 active cases (an increase of 19)
- 2,932 recoveries (an increase of 42)
- 75 deaths to date (unchanged)
There are 12 active outbreaks reported by HPPH, including seven at long-term care or retirement homes:
- Hillside Manor, Perth East, declared Dec. 31 and involving two staff cases
- Kingsway Lodge, St. Marys, declared Jan. 3 and involving two resident cases and two staff cases
- Queensway Nursing home, Bluewater, declared Dec. 31 and involving one resident case and one staff case
- Wildwood Care Centre, St. Marys, declared Dec. 27 and involving three staff cases
- Exeter Villa, South Huron, declared Jan. 2 and involving one resident case and two staff cases
- Maplewood Manor Retirement Home, Huron East, declared Dec. 30 and involving one resident case and one staff case
- Seaforth Manor Retirement Home, Huron East, declared Jan. 2 and involving two staff cases
HPPH is reporting five outbreaks at congregate living settings but no further details were provided.
Data on school cases can be found on the websites of the Avon-Maitland District School Board and the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board.
As of Jan. 4, 82.9 per cent of residents aged five and older have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while 78.0 per cent are fully vaccinated. Third-dose coverage stands at 31.0 per cent.
The region’s test positivity rate was 3.8 per cent for the week of Dec. 12. An updated figure is expected this week.
Information on how and where to get a vaccine can be found on the health unit’s website.
Sarnia and Lambton
Bluewater Health reported 26 patients in hospital with confirmed COVID-19, down from 27 the day before.
On Tuesday, Lambton Public Health reported:
- 6,397 total cases (an increase of 105)
- 1,249 active cases (a decrease of 73)
- 5,064 resolved cases (an increase of 178)
- 84 deaths to date (unchanged)
LPH reported seven active outbreaks as of Wednesday, all at long-term care or retirement homes:
- Trillium Villa in Sarnia, declared Jan. 3 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
- Marshall Gowland Manor in Sarnia, declared Jan. 1 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
- Afton Park Place in Sarnia, declared Dec. 31 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
- Sumac Lodge in Sarnia, declared Dec. 31 and involving nine resident cases and fewer than five cases among staff/caregivers
- Fiddick’s Nursing Home in Petrolia, declared Dec. 30 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
- Vision Nursing Home in Sarnia, declared Dec. 29 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
- Rosewood Retirement Village in Sarnia, declared Dec. 26 and involving fewer than five residents and fewer than five staff/caregivers
The outbreak involving an unidentified workplace with two cases, declared Dec. 20., was listed as over as of Jan. 4.
All active cases at schools within the Lambton Kent District School Board can be found online, as can cases at schools within the St. Clair Catholic District School Board.
The test positivity rate was 6.8 per cent for the week of Dec. 12, the most recent data available, up from 3.6 per cent for the week of Dec. 5.
Eighty-one per cent of area residents age five and older have had at least one dose while 76 per cent have had two doses. Twenty-two per cent have had a third dose, health unit data shows.
Residents can book and re-book COVID-19 vaccine appointments or find information on vaccine availability at pharmacies using the health unit’s registration page. People can also contact the vaccine call centre at 226-254-8222.
Those who are able to get vaccinated on short notice are encouraged to sign up for Lambton Public Health’s daily Vaccine Standby List.
— with files from Gabby Rodrigues
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