COVID-19: LHSC has 38 COVID patients, MLHU reports 85 cases, no deaths

Jump to: Hospitalizations – Cases and testing – Outbreaks – Vaccinations – Ontario – Elgin and Oxford – Huron and Perth – Sarnia and Lambton

Hospitalizations

London Health Sciences Centre reported Thursday that it was caring for 38 inpatients with COVID-19, with five or fewer in adult critical care, compared to 44 inpatients with five or fewer in adult critical care last Thursday.

LHSC says five or fewer of its COVID-19 inpatients are in Children’s Hospital, while zero are in pediatric critical care. Last week, there were five or fewer COVID inpatients in Children’s Hospital with five or fewer in pediatric critical care.

Of the 38 inpatients with COVID-19, 13 are being treated for COVID-19 while 25 are being treated for something other than COVID-19 but were found to have an incidental infection.

At least 154 staff cases are currently active at LHSC. Data was not available last Wednesday.

At St. Joseph’s Health Care London, officials reported 61 active cases among health-care workers along with three patient or resident cases, all at Parkwood Institute’s Main Building. Last Thursday, St. Joseph’s reported the same number of health-care worker cases but only two patient or resident cases.

Cases and testing

The Middlesex-London Health Unit reported no new COVID-19-related deaths on Thursday but added 85 cases. Last Thursday, the health unit reported no deaths and 67 cases.

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.

So far, there have been four deaths reported in March.

The health unit says there have been 32,418 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. At least 615 are active (an increase of 23) while 31,450 have resolved (an increase of 61). A total of 353 deaths have been reported (unchanged).

The test positivity rate for the week of Feb. 27 was 11.9 per cent, up from up from a revised 10.5 per cent the week prior.

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.

Outbreaks

As of Wednesday, LHSC had one active outbreak in University Hospital’s U8 General Surgery 100/200/300, declared Feb. 28, involving 12 patient cases and 11 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
• Chelsey Park, fourth floor – A Wing and B Wing, declared March 4
• Chelsey Park Retirement Community, facility-wide, declared March 4
• Horizon Place, facility-wide, declared Feb. 24
• Kensington Village Retirement, eighth avenue, declared Feb. 18

Vaccinations

The MLHU announced Thursday that operation times at mass vaccination clinics will change starting next week.

As of March 14, the Caradoc Community Centre in Mount Brydges will be open Monday to Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. As of March 29, the Agriplex location in London will operate Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The health unit will also be holding another Superhero Saturday event to encourage vaccine uptake among kids. Both the Agriplex and Caradoc Community Centre will be having Superhero Saturdays on March 12 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Spider-Mary Jane will be at the Agriplex and Spider-Man will be at the Caradoc Community Centre, the health unit says. Attendees are also encouraged to come dressed as their favourite superhero.

Medical officer of health Dr. Alex Summers also said Thursday that the health unit is anticipating shipments of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine “over the next little while.”

“We’ll be communicating out for individuals who would like to receive Novavax, we’ll be asking them to call in to get their name on a wait list, and then we will be rolling out a series of clinics to meet people who’ve been on the waitlist. We did the same thing for the Johnson and Johnson vaccine.”

As of the end of day March 5, 90.8 per cent of residents aged five and older have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 87.5 per cent have had two — up from 90.7 per cent and 87.3 per cent, respectively, a week earlier.

For third doses, 50.2 per cent of people five and older have received a booster, up from 49.8 per cent a week earlier. 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.

For children aged five to 11, first-dose coverage stands at 60.1 per cent, up from 59.8 per cent a week earlier, while 42.7 per cent have received two doses.

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.

Ontario

The province reported 742 people in hospital with COVID on Thursday, with 244 in ICUs. Last Thursday, those figures were 834 and 267, respectively.

Of the 742 in hospital, 46 per cent were admitted because of the virus while 54 per cent were admitted for another reason but tested positive for COVID.

Of the 244 in ICUs, 79 per cent were admitted because of COVID.

Ontario also reported 2,125 lab-confirmed cases though that is considered an underestimate when factoring in widespread transmission and testing restrictions.

Twenty more deaths were also reported for a pandemic total of 12,638.

Elgin and Oxford

Southwestern Public Health announced Thursday that it is expecting a limited supply of Novavax vaccine in the coming weeks.

Anyone with questions about the Novavax vaccine or anyone interested in adding their name to a waitlist for the vaccine, is asked to contact SWPH at 1-800-922-0096 ext. 9.

“Those who speak Low German can press ext. 1 for the St. Thomas location and 2 to leave a message,” SWPH said.

Southwestern Public Health issues updates on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, barring holidays.

The health unit reported no new COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday and 61 additional lab-confirmed cases from Monday’s total. Last week, SWPH reported no deaths and 33 cases.

There were seven COVID-19 hospitalizations on Wednesday, with four in intensive care, compared to five hospitalizations with four ICU inpatients a week ago.

The test positivity rate for the week of Feb. 20 was 13.1 per cent, up from 11.7 per cent the week prior.

SWPH reported on Wednesday:

• 11,417 cases (an increase of 61 cases from Monday)
• 213 active cases (an increase of 13 from Monday)
• 11,055 resolved cases (an increase of 182 from Monday; note that SWPH clears all cases after 10 days regardless of outcome)
• 149 total deaths to date (unchanged)

The most recent death to be reported was Feb. 25 and involved a woman in her 60s from Oxford County.

Health unit officials reported one active institutional outbreak at Chartwell Oxford Gardens in Woodstock. Declared March 2, it involves eight resident cases and three staff cases.

As of March 7, 80.9 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 one patient in hospital due to COVID-19, with zero cases considered active. Last Thursday, HPPH reported three patients in hospital with two cases considered active.

In total, HPPH has reported 5,784 cases (an increase of 11) and 94 deaths to date (unchanged.)

For the week of Feb. 27, the test positivity rate was 7.9 per cent, up from 7.7 per cent a week prior.

HPPH reported 717 total cases among health-care workers since March 2020, an increase of five from Wednesday.

As of March 6, 84.2 per cent of residents aged five and older have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while 81 per cent have received two.

Third-dose coverage stands at 52.3 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 seven patients in hospital with confirmed COVID-19 as of Thursday, with one in the ICU. Last Thursday, Bluewater Health reported five patients in hospital with COVID, with one in the ICU.

The region’s average ICU occupancy sat at 63 per cent for the week of Feb. 27, up from 50 per cent for the week of Feb. 20, health officials said.

Lambton Public Health releases case information on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The health unit reported two deaths and 43 cases on Wednesday, for a total of 128 deaths and 9,957 cases.

Two active outbreaks have been reported in “congregate settings,” at St. Francis Advocates in Port Franks and Trillium Villa long-term care home in Sarnia. Both were declared Feb. 25 and involve fewer than five cases among residents and fewer than five cases among staff or visitors.

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