Jump to: Hospitalizations – Cases and testing – Outbreaks – Vaccinations – Ontario – Elgin and Oxford – Huron and Perth – Sarnia and Lambton
- Officials with the Middlesex-London Health Unit reported 67 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases Thursday, though case counts are considered an under-estimate due to testing restrictions and widespread transmission.
- At London Health Sciences Centre, 44 inpatients with COVID-19 were being cared for on Thursday. Of those, five or fewer are in adult critical care.
- For the third consecutive day, updated data on active staff cases within LHSC was not available. LHSC said it is “validating our data and will post when it is available.” As of Monday, the count was 232.
Hospitalizations
LHSC was caring for 44 COVID-19 inpatients on Thursday, with five or fewer in adult critical care. Last Thursday, LHSC was caring for 50 COVID-19 patients with seven in adult intensive care.
There are five or fewer COVID-19 inpatients in Children’s Hospital with five or fewer in pediatric critical care. The same figures were reported last Thursday.
LHSC says of its 44 COVID-19 inpatients, 15 are being treated for COVID-19, while 29 are being treated with COVID-19, meaning they were admitted for a different reason and were found to have an incidental COVID-19 infection.
As patient numbers have fallen in recent weeks, staff cases climbed but data on staff cases has not been updated since Monday. LHSC said “we are currently validating our data and will post when it is available.”
As of Monday, the most recent data available, 232 staff members at LHSC were positive for COVID-19. Last Thursday, there were 179 cases (two weeks ago, there were 136 staff cases).
At St. Joseph’s Health Care London, 61 cases were reported active among health-care workers. The same figure was reported last Thursday.
Two cases were reported involving patients or residents, both at Parkwood Institute’s main building. Last Thursday, there were four patient/resident cases in total.
Cases and testing
The Middlesex-London Health Unit reported 67 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Thursday and no deaths. So far, only one death has been reported in March.
When looking at case counts, it should be noted that due to changes in eligibility for PCR testing, daily case counts are not considered a fully reliable reflection of COVID-19 activity in the region.
The Middlesex-London Health Unit says individuals who are experiencing 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.
The health unit says there have been 31,945 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. At least 574 cases are currently active (a decrease of two) while 31,021 have resolved (an increase of 129) and 350 deaths have been reported (unchanged).
The test positivity rate for the week of Feb. 20 was 12.6 per cent, up from a revised 11.2 per cent the week prior.
Outbreaks
The following outbreaks are active within LHSC:
- University Hospital
- U8 General Surgery 100/200, declared Feb. 28, seven patient cases and five or fewer staff cases.
- U9 300 – Medicine, declared Feb. 17, involving nine patient cases.
- Victoria Hospital
- C6 100 Geriatric Behavioural Unit, declared Feb. 21, involving five or fewer patient cases and five or fewer staff cases.
LHSC updates its outbreak data on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, unless an outbreak is declared or resolved.
Additionally, the MLHU is reporting the following active institutional outbreaks:
- Ashwood Manor, facility-wide, declared Feb. 22
- Dorchester Terrace, second floor, declared Feb. 19
- Horizon Place, facility-wide, declared Feb. 24
- Kensington Village Retirement, eighth avenue, declared Feb. 18
Vaccinations
The MLHU’s mass vaccination clinic at Earl Nichols Recreation Centre will close March 4 due to decreased demand combined with a pivot towards increasing mobile operations.
Further information on vaccination in the MLHU’s region, as well as other COVID-19-related information, can be found on the health unit’s website.
As of the end of day Feb. 26, 90.7 per cent of residents age five and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine while 87.3 per cent have had two doses, up from 90.6 per cent and 86.9 per cent, respectively, a week prior.
The percentage of people aged five and older who have received third doses is 49.8 per cent, up from 49.2 per cent the week before. Note that those aged 12 to 17 only became eligible for a third dose as of Feb. 18 and those under 12 are still not eligible.
First-dose coverage for those aged five to 11 is 59.8 per cent, up from 59.5 per cent.
Ontario
The province reported 834 cases Thursday, with 267 in ICUs, compared with 1,066 and 302, respectively, a week ago.
Data showing how many cases were admitted due to COVID-19 and how many involved individuals who were admitted to hospital for another reason but tested positive for COVID was not available Thursday.
Ontario also reported 2,252 lab-confirmed cases Thursday, believed to be an under-estimate when factoring in widespread transmission coupled with restrictions on testing.
Nineteen more virus-related deaths were reported Thursday, bringing the pandemic total to 12,497.
Elgin and Oxford
Southwestern Public Health reported no new COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, and 33 new lab-confirmed cases.
The health unit issues updates Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, barring holidays.
There were at least five COVID-19 hospitalizations on Wednesday, with three in intensive care. That’s down from 11 hospitalizations and four ICU inpatients last Wednesday.
The most recent death to be reported was on Friday involving a woman in her 60s from Oxford County.
The test positivity rate for the week of Feb. 20 was 13.1 per cent, up from11.7 per cent the week prior.
SWPH reported:
- 11,244 cases (an increase of 33 cases with one case removed due to data cleanup).
- 222 active cases (a decrease of 17 from Monday).
- 10,873 resolved cases (an increase of 49 from Monday; note that SWPH clears all cases after 10 days regardless of outcome).
- 149 total deaths to date (unchanged).
No active institutional outbreaks were reported due to COVID-19 on Wednesday.
As of Feb. 28, 80.7 per cent of those aged five and older in the region had received two doses of the vaccine, while 83.6 per cent have had at least one dose.
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
On Thursday, Huron Perth Public Health reported three patients in hospital due to COVID-19, with two cases considered active. Last Thursday, HPPH reported five patients in hospital, with four considered active.
In total, HPPH has reported 5,693 cases (an increase of 13) and 94 deaths to date (an increase of one).
For the week of Feb. 20, the test positivity rate was 7.7 per cent, down from 9.0 per cent the week prior.
HPPH reported 699 total cases among health-care workers since March 2020, an increase of six from Wednesday.
As of Feb. 27, 84.2 per cent of residents aged five and older have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while 80.9 per cent have received two.
Third-dose coverage stands at 52 per cent of those five and older. It should be noted, however, that those under the age of 12 are not yet eligible for a third dose, and those aged 12 to 17 only became eligible for a booster dose as of Feb. 18.
Information on how and where to get a vaccine can be found on the health unit’s website.
Sarnia and Lambton
Bluewater Health reported five patients in hospital with confirmed COVID-19 as of Thurday, with one in the ICU. Last Thursday, the hospital was caring for 12 COVID-19 inpatients, with one in the ICU.
Lambton Public Health reported that the region’s average occupancy sat at 50 per cent for the week of Feb. 20, down from 55 per cent a week earlier and 67 per cent the week of Feb. 6. The average number of inpatients with COVID-19 is 10.
LPH case information is released on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
On Wednesday, LPH said there were 9,821 total cases (an increase of 36 from Monday) and 127 deaths (unchanged).
Two active outbreaks have been reported in “congregate settings,” both declared active on Feb. 25.
The outbreaks involve St. Francis Advocates, a congregate living setting in Port Franks, and Trillium Villa, a long-term care home in Sarnia. Both outbreaks involve fewer than five resident cases and fewer than five staff or visitor cases.
The test positivity rate for the week of Feb. 20 was 14.7 per cent, down from 18.1 per cent the week prior.
Among area residents aged five and older, 83 per cent have had at least one dose of vaccine, 80 per cent have had two doses and 49 per cent have had a third dose. Note that those under 12 are not currently eligible for a third dose.
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 Global News’ Gabby Rodrigues
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