Health
COVID-19: 22 new cases in London-Middlesex; 16 patients in hospital, LHSC says – London
Jump to: Hospitalizations – Outbreaks – Schools – Vaccinations and Testing – Ontario – Elgin and Oxford – Huron and Perth – Sarnia and Lambton
Health officials in London-Middlesex reported Tuesday that 22 new coronavirus cases had been confirmed in the region.
In addition, the number of screened variant positive cases has risen by two.
It brings the region’s pandemic case tally to 6,637, of which 6,263 had resolved — an increase of 19 from the day before. At least 185 deaths have been reported, most recently on March 8.
As of Tuesday, the region has at least 189 active coronavirus cases, the health unit says. At least 457 cases have been confirmed since the start of the month.
London-Middlesex remains in the orange-restrict level of the province’s COVID-19 response framework.
Of the 22 new coronavirus cases, 18 are from London while four are from Middlesex County, MLHU figures show.
Three are 19 or younger; seven are in their 20s; three each are in their 30s and 40s; five are in their 50s; and one is 80 or older.
Thirteen cases have close contact listed as their exposure source, while three are listed as having no known link and two are due to outbreaks. Four are pending data.
During Monday’s media briefing, Dr. Chris Mackie, the region’s medical officer of health, noted the increasing number of per-case close contacts.
“It’s so important that any gatherings you have occur outdoors. The number of close contacts per-case … continues to increase, and is now in the range of eight to 10,” Mackie said.
“If you have more than five or six close contacts over the last week, then you could potentially be contributing to part of the problem we’re seeing here. Please do not have indoor contact with people without wearing masks. It is the reason we are seeing a third wave taking off.”
A prime example is the large community outbreak that was declared nearly two weeks ago. The outbreak has been linked to at least 49 people, unchanged from late last week.
The outbreak was declared after multiple people contracted the virus while at one or more of at least 10 gatherings between March 2 and 6.
Concerns about increased contacts and a local third wave come as more local cases have screened variant positive. As of Tuesday, 54 cases had screened positive, up two the day before and 13 more than Friday.
A screened variant positive case means it has been found to have the N501Y spike gene mutation, a mutation shared by the three variants of concern being tracked by the province. Further genomic sequencing is being done to determine which variant.
At least four have been confirmed to involve the B.1.1.7 variant, first detected in the U.K.
The region’s seven-day case average stood at 25 as of Tuesday, unchanged from the day before. The 14-day average stood at 22.5.
At least 5,795 cases have been confirmed in the city of London since the pandemic began, while 257 have been in Middlesex Centre.
Elsewhere, 215 cases have been in Strathroy-Caradoc, 98 in Thames Centre, 59 in Lucan Biddulph, 41 in Southwest Middlesex, 38 in North Middlesex, 14 in Adelaide Metcalfe and two in Newbury.
At least 118 cases have pending location information.
Hospitalizations
The number of COVID-19 inpatients in the care of London Health Sciences Centre has risen to 16 as of Tuesday, up three from the day before.
At the same time, six are said to be in critical or intensive care, up from ‘five or fewer’ on Tuesday.
Active LHSC staff cases, however, fell Wednesday to six, a decrease of two from the day before.
Meantime, St. Joseph’s Health Care London had no COVID-19 cases among patients or staff at any of its facilities as of Monday. The tally has not changed since March 8.
The health unit says at least 370 people have been hospitalized for COVID-19 during the pandemic, including 67 who have needed intensive care.
Institutional outbreaks
No new institutional outbreaks have been declared and none have been resolved, according to the health unit.
Five remain active in the region, with four at seniors’ facilities and one at University Hospital.
Active institutional outbreaks (as of March 20), as declared on:
- March 12 at Dearness Home (2E/2W)
- March 12 at University Hospital (U4-Medicine 1/4IP General Medicine)
- March 11 at Glendale Crossing (Brighton)
- Feb. 28 at Richmond Woods (facility)
- Feb. 24 at Chartwell Royalcliffe Retirement Residence (facility)
No change has been reported in relation to the University Hospital outbreak.
The outbreak has been linked to at least six patient cases and fewer than five staff cases.
Declared March 12, the outbreak is located in the same unit that experienced a significant outbreak in the fall, an outbreak that later spread to at least five other units.
A non-institutional outbreak remains active at the city’s jail. The Elgin-Middlesex Detention Centre outbreak was declared on Jan. 18 and has been linked to at least 29 inmate and 29 staff cases.
At least two inmate cases were listed as being active at the jail on Sunday, provincial data shows. Similar information was not immediately available for staff cases.
Schools
At least five new school cases have been reported in the region since late Monday afternoon.
Two cases have been reported by the London District Catholic School Board at St. Francis School in London.
Elsewhere, the Thames Valley District School Board has reported one new case each at North Meadows Elementary School in Strathroy-Caradoc and at Prince Charles Public School in London.
One new case has also been reported by Conseil scolaire Viamonde at École élémentaire La Pommeraie in London, according to the health unit.
At least 11 school cases are active in London-Middlesex as of Tuesday. A full list can be found on the MLHU website.
One outbreak remains active in the region, located at Wilberforce Public School, declared on March 15. Two cases are currently active there.
The health unit says at least 223 elementary and secondary school cases have been reported in the region during the pandemic.
In addition, 27 cases have been reported in local child care and early years settings.
Three child care or early years-associated cases were listed by the health unit as being active on Tuesday.
They are associated with a private before and after school program in Lucan Biddulph, Little Acorns Early Childhood Learning Centre – London Bridge, and YMCA Before and After School Program – North Meadows Elementary School, the health unit says.
Elsewhere, an outbreak remains active in the post-secondary world involving Western University’s Essex Hall residence. The outbreak was declared on March 2.
Vaccinations and testing
Vaccine eligibility expanded Monday to include residents aged 75 to 79, and demand was high, health officials say.
More than 30,000 hits to the local booking website were registered within the first half-hour that appointment-taking began on Monday, said Dr. Chris Mackie during Monday’s media briefing.
Those currently aged 74 but who are turning 75 this year are also eligible.
Eligible residents are asked to visit covidvaccinelm.ca or call 226-289-3560 (9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.) to book an appointment. Online appointments are encouraged due to high call volume.
More information on eligibility can be found on the health unit’s website.
Three mass vaccination clinics are currently operating in the region with the most recent opening last week at the North London Optimist Community Centre. A fourth is planned but an opening date has not yet been announced.
Mackie says none of the three clinics are currently operating at maximum capacity due to vaccine supply limitations.
Both the North London clinic and the Western Fair District Clinic have a maximum capacity of 2,000 doses per day, while the clinic in Mount Brydges can administer up to 550 per day. Each are currently operating between 35 and 65 per cent capacity, Mackie says.
Roughly 60,000 doses of vaccine had been administered locally as of late last week.
During Monday’s briefing, Mackie was asked when doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine would arrive in London for administration at local pharmacies.
A pilot offering Oxford-AstraZeneca shots to people 60 and older started this month in Toronto, Kingston and Windsor pharmacies and it’s expected to expand to 700 sites over the next few weeks.
On Monday, Premier Doug Ford said the pharmacy pilot would be expanded in the coming weeks to include Peel and York regions if the province received more doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
It’s unclear whether it may be expanded to London-Middlesex.
“We’re not getting direct information. That information is flowing from the provincial government to the pharmacies,” Mackie said about a possible local expansion.
“Local public health is aware that there is a pilot in some of the health units in Ontario. Beyond that, we don’t know what the next steps will be, which pharmacies, or anything really, about that process.”
Some London-area residents have reportedly made the drive out of town to regions that are offering pharmacy vaccinations, something Mackie says he has no problem with if people are eligible, can find an appointment, and adhere to pandemic guidelines.
“We certainly have seen people, lots of people, from southwestern Ontario and even from the Greater Toronto Area coming here to get their vaccines at various points. No issues with that as long as they are taking precautions, keeping the distance, wearing masks … Go where you can get a vaccine.”
Read more:
Group representing Ontario family doctors calls for more involvement in COVID-19 vaccinations
The region’s two main assessment centres, located at Carling Heights and Oakridge Arena, remain open and operating by appointment.
The Carling Heights site saw an average of 399 daily visits between March 7 and 12, while Oakridge Arena saw an average of 330.
The region’s test positivity rate stood at 1.2 per cent as of the week of March 7, up from 1.1 the week before.
At least 10,702 people were tested the week of March 7.
Ontario
Ontario reported 1,546 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday as well as nine more deaths linked to the virus.
Health Minister Christine Elliott says there are 465 new cases in Toronto, 329 in Peel Region and 161 in York Region.
Tuesday’s data is based on nearly 32,600 tests completed.
Ontario reported 868 people are hospitalized with the virus, an increase of 55 from Monday.
The province says that 1,271 cases were resolved since the last daily update.
Another 50,659 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine were administered since Monday’s report.
A total of 1,603,699 vaccine doses have been given in the province.
Elgin and Oxford
Seventeen new coronavirus cases have been reported in the Elgin-Oxford region, officials with Southwestern Public Health said Tuesday.
The region’s pandemic case tally stands at 2,716, of which 2,571 have resolved, an increase of 14 from the day before. At least 67 deaths have been reported, most recently on Feb. 20.
Seventy-eight cases are active in the region as of Tuesday, with 33 in Woodstock, 13 in St. Thomas, and nine each in Central Elgin and Ingersoll.
The number of screened variant positive cases in the region has risen by six from the day before to a total of at least 47, with at least 21 cases still active.
A screened variant positive case means it has screened positive for the N501Y spike gene mutation, a mutation shared by the three variants of concern being tracked by the province.
Further genomic sequencing is done to determine which variant. Five have been confirmed to involve the B.1.1.7 variant, first detected in the U.K.
The region remains in the orange-restrict level of Ontario’s COVID-19 response framework.
The local vaccination campaign rolls on, with those aged 75-79 now eligible to receive a jab.
Eligible residents are asked to visit covidvaccinelm.ca or call 226-289-3560 (9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.) to book an appointment.
Three clinics are currently operating in Elgin-Oxford.
Health unit figures show at least 3,626 people in Elgin-Oxford have been fully vaccinated as of March 13, while just over 5,000 have seen only one dose. Updated figures are expected this week.
Further information on the local vaccination effort can be found on the health unit’s website.
No new school cases have been reported in Elgin-Oxford.
Eight cases remain active at St. Patrick’s Catholic Elementary School and five at St. Michael’s Catholic School, both in Woodstock.
Outbreak declarations remain active at both schools, which have closed temporarily as a result. St. Michael’s is closed at least March 24 and St. Patrick’s until at least March 28.
Elsewhere, Davenport Public School and South Dorchester Public School both have one active associated case each.
Meantime, no new institutional outbreaks have been reported. Only one is active, located at Arches Transitional Bed Program in Woodstock. Declared on March 9, it’s linked to one staff case.
The health unit says a total of 570 cases have been reported in Woodstock during the pandemic, while 454 have been in Aylmer, 446 in St. Thomas and 343 in Tillsonburg.
Elsewhere, 206 cases have been in Norwich, 163 in Bayham, 126 in Ingersoll, 113 in East Zorra-Tavistock, 57 in Zorra, 56 in Blandford-Blenheim, 56 in Central Elgin, 48 in South-West Oxford, 25 in Southwold, 24 in Dutton/Dunwich, 20 in West Elgin and eight in Malahide.
The region’s test positivity rate stood at 1.1 per cent as of the week of March 7, up from 1.0 the week before. Updated figures are expected this week.
At least 4,550 people were tested the week of March 7, down from 4,779 a week earlier.
Huron and Perth
No new coronavirus cases were reported in the Huron-Perth region, local health officials said Tuesday.
The region’s pandemic case tally remains unchanged at 1,401, of which 1,339 have resolved, three more than the day before. At least 50 deaths have been reported, most recently on March 1.
The number of active cases in the region stands at 12, with five located in Stratford, two each in Central Huron and South Huron, and one each in Perth South, St. Marys, and West Perth.
At least four screened variant positive cases have been reported in Huron-Perth, unchanged from the day before. All remain under investigation to determine which variant may be involved.
The region remains in the yellow-protect level of Ontario’s COVID-19 response framework.
High demand for the vaccine, prompted by the expanding of eligibility to those between 75 and 79-years-old, prompted local health officials to close their appointment booking system early on Monday.
The system reopened on Tuesday.
Huron Perth Public Health says it had administered nearly 12,000 vaccine doses as of March 20.
“The number of appointments we can provide depends on the vaccine supply we are allotted by the province which in turn depends on federal allotments,” officials said in an update Monday.
“Vaccine supply is becoming more stable and predictable, however right now it still limits how many clinics we can run.”
Those looking to book a vaccination appointment are asked to do so via the health unit’s booking website or by calling 1-833-753-2098.
More information on the local vaccination campaign can be found on the HPPH website.
No new school cases have been reported in the region.
Two are active, with one associated with St. Michael Catholic Secondary School in Stratford and one at Romeo Public School in Stratford.
In the case of the Romeo Public School case, the Avon-Maitland District School Board says the infected individual did not attend school when they would have been potentially infectious to others.
No new outbreaks have been declared at seniors’ facilities, hospitals, schools, child-care centres, congregate living settings, or workplaces, and no outbreaks are currently active.
At least 557 cases have been reported in Perth County, with 348 in North Perth and 138 in Perth East, while at least 461 been reported in Huron County, with 103 in South Huron and 101 in Huron East.
Stratford has reported at least 350 in total, while St. Marys has seen 33.
The region’s test positivity rate stood at 0.8 per cent as of the week of March 7, slightly down from 0.9 per cent the week before. Updated figures are expected this week.
At least 2,942 people were tested the week of March 7, down from 3,180 a week earlier, however, finalized numbers were not available.
Sarnia and Lambton
Seventeen new coronavirus cases have been reported in Lambton County, local health officials said Tuesday.
The region’s pandemic case tally stands at 2,643, of which 2,376 have resolved, an increase of 40 from the day before. At least 47 deaths have been reported, unchanged since March 16.
At least 220 cases are active in Lambton. Three people are listed as being in the care of Bluewater Health.
The number of cases that have screened variant positive has risen by 11 to 71 as of Tuesday, the health unit said. The tally is 30 higher than Friday.
At least 530 cases have been reported in Lambton since the start of the month.
The region remains in grey-lockdown of the province’s COVID-19 response framework.
The health unit says it’s launching a pilot project to administer the Moderna vaccine to residents with high-risk chronic health conditions through four local primary care practice groups.
The groups, Central Lambton Family Health Team, Twin Bridges Nurse Practitioner Clinic, Rapids Family Health Team, and North Lambton Community Health Centre, have been given a total of 2,600 initial doses for the pilot, which begins this week.
In a statement, the health unit says the plan hopes to increase access to vaccines to those eligible in the region, build primary care delivery capacity, and expand channels to distribute the vaccine.
“It is anticipated this pilot will give these providers experience with storage and handling of the COVID-19 vaccines, as well as the Provincial reporting system (COVAX) that is critical to ensure every dose is accounted for,” said Dr. Sudit Ranade, the region’s medical officer of health, in a statement.
“Most importantly this pilot will also help protect some of our community’s most vulnerable.
More primary care groups will be able to join the pilot as supply of the vaccine becomes more stable and the AstraZeneca vaccine becomes more widely available.
The health unit notes the local pilot is not related to the one being operated by the province through pharmacies in select public health units. Lambton is not currently involved in the provincial pilot.
More information on the local vaccine rollout can be found on the health unit’s website.
Those eligible to book a vaccine appointment are asked to visit the health unit’s website or call 519-383-8331.
At least one new school case has been reported in the region, located at Great Lakes Secondary School.
It’s among more than 80 school cases that are active in Lambton County, according to figures from the Lambton Kent District School Board and the St. Clair Catholic District School Board.
Seven outbreaks associated with schools are also active, the health unit says.
School outbreaks remain active at:
- Brooke Central Public School (seven cases)
- Confederation Central Public School (five cases)
- Holy Trinity Catholic School (three cases)
- King George Public School (two cases)
- North Lambton Secondary School (13 cases)
- Northern High School (two cases)
- St. Patrick’s Catholic High School (two cases).
Meantime, no new outbreaks have been declared in the region, but one has been declared resolved.
The outbreak had been declared on March 9 at Landmark Village, and was linked with one staff case there, the health unit says.
Including the seven aforementioned school outbreaks, six remain active at seniors’ facilities in the county, declared on:
- March 20 at Fairwinds Lodge in Sarnia (one staff case)
- March 19 at Afton Park Place in Sarnia (one staff case)
- March 18 at Marshall Gowland Manor in Sarnia (one staff case)
- March 16 at Sumac Lodge in Sarnia (one staff case)
- March 11 at Trillium Villa in Sarnia (three staff cases)
- March 11 at Vision Nursing Home in Sarnia (one staff case)
The health unit says the county’s test positivity rate was 3.3 per cent as of the week of March 7, up from 3.1 the week before and 1.7 a week before that. Updated numbers are expected this week.
— With files from The Canadian Press
© 2021 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
.
What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos
Pictures Credit
to request, modification Contact us at Here or [email protected]
 |
 |
 |
