Nova Scotia reported two more deaths related to COVID-19 on Thursday and an outbreak at another ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital.
In a release, the province said a man in his 50s and a man in his 70s, both in the Eastern Zone, have died.
“This is an extremely sad time for their families and friends. I want to extend my deepest condolences to all those who are grieving the loss of their loved one,” said Premier Tim Houston in the release.
The province noted that data on deaths come from Panorama, public health’s disease information system, and are only entered into the system after the death is identified to be COVID-related, “which can take days or weeks to investigate and report.”
“Data on deaths is reflective of virus activity in the past, at the point of infection, and not the situation today, at the point of reporting,” the release said.
The province also reported 10 people who have been admitted to hospital since the last update and five discharges. There are now 66 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care, including 11 people in ICU.
The ages of those in hospital range from 13 to 93 years old and the median age is 64. The median length of stay is 6.3 days.
The vaccination status of those in hospital is:
- 22 (33.3 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine;
- 24 (36.4 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses);
- One (1.5 per cent) is partially vaccinated;
- 19 (28.8 per cent) are unvaccinated.
“It is important to note that less than 10 per cent of Nova Scotians are unvaccinated,” the release said.
In addition to the 66 admitted to hospital due to COVID-19, there are another 135 people who were identified as positive upon arrival to hospital but were admitted for another reason, or were admitted for COVID-19 but no longer need specialized care.
As well, another 166 people contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital.
The province also reported 242 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19, out of 2,015 tests completed Wednesday.
There are 80 cases in the Central Zone, 67 in the Eastern Zone, 50 in the Northern Zone and 45 in the Western Zone.
According to the release, 91.6 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 85.9 per cent have received their second dose. As well, 61 per cent of those aged 18 and older have received a booster dose.
Hospital outbreaks
Nova Scotia Health reported a new outbreak in a ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital, where fewer than 10 patients have tested positive. This is the third ward at the hospital with an active outbreak.
The health authority is also reporting new cases related to ongoing outbreaks:
- Three more patients in a ward at Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre in Amherst have tested positive, for a total of 13;
- Two more patients in a separate ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital; fewer than 10 have tested positive;
- One more patient in a separate ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital; fewer than 10 have tested positive;
- One more patient in a ward at Hants Community Hospital in Windsor; fewer than 10 have tested positive.