Manitoba reports rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations, deaths

Manitoba saw an increase in both COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths linked to the virus last week, health officials say.

The province’s latest epidemiology update shows 116 people were admitted to hospital between Oct. 23 and 29, up from 100 the week before.

Of the latest hospitalizations, seven required the intensive care unit, according to the report. The previous week saw 16 ICU admissions due to the virus.

It’s not known how many people are currently in hospital and ICU as a result of COVID-19, because the province no longer reports those numbers.

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Health officials say 11 more Manitobans with COVID-19 died last week, up from eight deaths reported the previous week.

The province’s COVID-19 death toll rose to 2,232, though — 21 more deaths than had been reported a week earlier.

The province has said the number of deaths can fluctuate week to week as previous cases are confirmed or removed from the list.

Officials say the number of new cases also rose, with 411 lab-confirmed infections identified last week, up from 362 the previous week.

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With an average of 328 tests completed a day, the positivity rate of lab tests increased to 28.7 per cent from 24 per cent the previous week.

Provincial case counts and test positivity rates don’t necessarily give an accurate picture of active infection rates, however, because the government has significantly scaled back testing and the data doesn’t include the results of tests done at home.

Officials said there were nine new outbreaks reported at Manitoba long-term care homes between Oct. 23 and 29.

Wastewater surveillance data for Winnipeg shows there’s been increased activity of COVID-19 in the city since early October, officials said.

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Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, visit our coronavirus page.