TORONTO – Covid-19: hospitalizations in Ontario remain stable after the increase in recent days. But the number of deaths remains high: today another 27, bringing the total in the province, from the beginning of pandemic, to 12,618. 

Returning to the hospitalizations, the patients present today in the hospitals were 751 (yesterday there were 779), of which 241 in intensive care against 246 on Tuesday. However, only 46% of the patients present in the ordinary wards of Covid-19 went to the hospital due to the coronavirus: the remaining – most – were hospitalized for other reasons and discovered that they had the virus upon entering the hospital, when they did the entry swab. For intensive care, the percentage of patients hospitalized for Covid (and not with Covid) rises to 82% of patients who have been hospitalized due to the virus.

As for infections, Ontario recorded 1,947 today, out of a total of 17,571 tests (reserved, we remind, only for the “at risk” categories) processed in the last 24 hours: the positivity rate is 10.9%. Most of the new infections were identified in the Greater Toronto Area: 295 cases in Toronto, 158 in the Peel region, 94 in the York region and 117 in the Durham region. Other areas with a number of elevator-related cases include Ottawa (169), Simcoe Muskoka (86), and Middlesex-London (72). 45 cases were also recorded among residents of long-term care homes and 35 staff members of the same facilities. 6 of the 27 deaths also go to nursing home residents. The active case are now 16,206.

In Quebec there was a decline in hospitalizations today: from 1,252 patients present on Tuesday in the hospitals of the province, they fell to 1,222. In intensive care there are now 69 people with Covid-19 (up from 77 yesterday). 6 deaths recorded today (compared to 29 yesterday): the total number of victims since the beginning of the pandemic in Quebec is now at 14,126. Out of 12,995 molecular tests analyzed (and reserved for the “at risk” categories), 1,426 were positive, with a positivity rate of 9.9%. The active and known cases in the province are 13,068 official.

Manitoba recorded another 3 deaths today, bringing the total since the beginning of the pandemic to 1,703. Looking at the hospital numbers, the total of patients jumped from 406 (Tuesday) to 436 (today). The number of those present in intensive care also increased, rising to 23 (+2). The province also added 210 new cases bringing the active case count to 7,903, although – as with other provinces – the number is far from reality due to testing limitations. The positivity rate remains high: 13%.

In British Columbia, 11 deaths were recorded over the past weekend, with the total since the start of the pandemic rising to 2,915. The number of patients present in the hospitals of the province – given on Monday, the latest update available as we write – has fallen to 449, the lowest since last January 10. The figure also includes “occasional” patients, ie patients hospitalized for reasons unrelated to the disease, but tested positive through routine screening. The number of Covid-patients in intensive care has also dropped to 63, compared to 69 last Friday.

Another 4 deaths were recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador in the last two days, 7 in Alberta on Tuesday (after 18 last weekend) and 3 in the last two days in New Brunswick.

Image by fernando zhiminaicela from Pixabay