COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Aug. 2, 2021

Paul Roberston works out at Crossfit Bytown as patrons return to the gym as Ontario enters phase 3 of reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ottawa on Friday, July 16, 2021. (Sean Kilpatrick/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

OTTAWA -

Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.

Fast Facts:

• Public Services and Procurement Canada says about 200 employees will be returning to offices in Ottawa and Gatineau this week.
• Ottawa's hospitals are once again COVID-19 free.
• COVID-19 restrictions have loosened further in Quebec.

COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):

• New COVID-19 cases: Five new cases on Sunday
• Total COVID-19 cases: 27,820
• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 4.1
• Positivity rate in Ottawa: 0.5 per cent (seven day average)
• Reproduction Number: 1.08 (seven day average)

Testing:

Who should get a test?

Ottawa Public Health says you can get a COVID-19 test at an assessment centre, care clinic, or community testing site if any of the following apply to you:

• You are showing COVID-19 symptoms;
• You have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus, as informed by Ottawa Public Health or exposure notification through the COVID Alert app;
• You are a resident or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by Ottawa Public Health;
• You are a resident, a worker or a visitor to long-term care, retirement homes, homeless shelters or other congregate settings (for example: group homes, community supported living, disability-specific communities or congregate settings, short-term rehab, hospices and other shelters);
• You are a person who identifies as First Nations, Inuit or Métis;
• You are a person travelling to work in a remote First Nations, Inuit or Métis community;
• You received a preliminary positive result through rapid testing;
• You are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort tra­velling out of country for medical treatment;
• You are a farm worker;
• You are an educator who cannot access pharmacy-testing; or
• You are in a targeted testing group as outlined in guidance from the Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Long-term care staff, caregivers, volunteers and visitors who are fully immunized against COVID-19 are not required to present a negative COVID-19 test before entering or visiting a long-term care home.

Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:

The following sites will be open for COVID-19 testing in Ottawa on Monday.

• COVID-19 CHEO Assessment Centre and Kids Come First Care Clinic at Brewer Park Arena is open 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.  
• COVID-19 Assessment Centre for Adults at Brewer Park Arena open 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• COVID-19 Drive-Thru Assessment Centre on Coventry Road open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  
• North Grenville COVID-19 Assessment Centre in Kemptville open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

To book an appointment at an assessment centre, visit the Ottawa Public Health COVID-19 Testing Information page.

COVID-19 screening tool:

The COVID-19 screening tool for summer camp children and staff. All campers and staff must complete the COVID-19 School and Childcare screening tool daily.

Symptoms:

Classic Symptoms: fever, new or worsening cough, shortness of breath

Other symptoms: sore throat, difficulty swallowing, new loss of taste or smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pneumonia, new or unexplained runny nose or nasal congestion

Less common symptoms: unexplained fatigue, muscle aches, headache, delirium, chills, red/inflamed eyes, croup

A slow trickle back to the office for the federal public service

After a year and a half of working from home, a number of federal public servants in the national capital region will be returning to the office this week.

Public Services and Procurement Canada told CTV News Ottawa in an email that about 200 employees have volunteered to be part of a pilot project that would see them return to offices in Ottawa and Gatineau. The "pathfinder project", as it's known, will inform a broader plan for a return to the workplace for the federal public service.

Workers will begin returning to their offices, if they so choose, starting Tuesday.

PSPC does not have a timeline for a full return to the workplace yet. Tens of thousands of federal public servants in the national capital region have been working from home since March 2020.

File photo of downtown Ottawa. (Photo by Robbie Palmer of Unsplash)

Five new cases Sunday but hospitals are empty

Ottawa Public Health said Sunday another five people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Ottawa, but local hospitals are free of COVID-19 patients.

The new cases reported Sunday bring Ottawa's pandemic total to 27,820.

No new deaths were reported in Ottawa on Sunday. The pandemic death toll stands at 593 residents.

Five more cases are considered resolved, holding the number of confirmed active cases steady.

There are zero active COVID-19 outbreaks in the city, according to OPH.

 

COVID-19 Cases in Ottawa
Infogram

Quebec lifts further COVID-19 restrictions

Quebec has lifted several additional COVID-19 restrictions, including last call at bars.

As of Sunday, Bars and restaurants are now permitted to serve alcohol until 1 a.m. and can remain open until 2 a.m.

Up to 15,000 people are now permitted to attend in pre-assigned seats at outdoor festivals. Indoor stadiums and auditoriums can seat up to 7,500 people with assigned seating. There must be at least one empty seat between people from different households.

Quebec does not report COVID-19 cases on weekends anymore, but added 125 new infections on Friday. 

A man walks by a sign advising people of COVID-19 prevention measures in Montreal, Saturday, July 31, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes