Alberta added nearly 50 people to the pandemic death toll in the past week, new data from the province shows.
Between Nov. 1 and 7, 46 Albertans’ deaths were directly attributed to COVID-19, bringing the total number to 5,093 in the 32 months since the coronavirus was detected in the province.
COVID hospitalizations continue a plateau at 1,090, a decline of five from the past week. Hospitalizations were last below these levels in mid-October.
ICU admissions jumped by 50 per cent to 36 from 24 the week prior.
According to AHS data, provincial ICU capacity sat at 81 per cent on Wednesday.
The seven-day positivity rate edged downward to 15.81 per cent, but the number of new cases detected via PCR test in the past week increased by 85 to 1,408.
PCR tests are restricted to individuals with clinical risk factors or who live and/or work in high-risk settings.
Since Thursday, seven units in acute care centres and hospitals declared outbreaks.
The Westlock Healthcare Centre declared an outbreak on Monday when four people tested positive for COVID-19.
A unit in the Grey Nuns Community Hospital in Edmonton declared an outbreak on Friday, bringing a total of four units and 21 people testing positive.
Edmonton’s Misericordia Community Hospital added another unit to outbreak on Friday, for a total of seven units still on outbreak status.
The Rockyview General Hospital has three units experiencing outbreaks when a third unit saw patients test positive on Thursday.
Calgary’s Foothills Medical Centre saw seven patients test positive on Thursday in one unit.
And the Chinook Regional Hospital added two units to outbreak status this week when nine patients tested positive on Monday and two in another unit on Tuesday.
An outbreak is declared when at least one person is deemed to have caught COVID-19 while in hospital.
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