COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for July 23, 2021
Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.
Fast Facts:
- Ottawa reported its highest number of new COVID-19 cases in nearly three weeks on Thursday
- The city is now offering to send mobile vaccination teams to community gatherings, places of worship and workplaces
- A new study has found that two doses of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines are nearly as effective against the Delta variant as they were against the previously dominant Alpha strain
COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):
- New COVID-19 cases: Nine new cases on Thursday
- Total COVID-19 cases: 27,761
- COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 2.7
- Positivity rate in Ottawa: 0.2 per cent (seven day average)
- Reproduction Number: 1.18 (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 require testing 72 hours before a scheduled (non-urgent or emergent) surgery (as recommended by your health care provider);
- You are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort travelling out of country for medical treatment;
- You are an international student that has passed their 14-day quarantine period;
- 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.
Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:
There are several sites for COVID-19 testing in Ottawa. To book an appointment, visit https://www.ottawapublichealth.ca/en/shared-content/assessment-centres.aspx
- The Brewer Ottawa Hospital/CHEO Assessment Centre: Open Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- COVID-19 Drive-Thru Assessment Centre at 300 Coventry Road: Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- North Grenville COVID-19 Assessment Centre (Kemptville) – 15 Campus Drive: Open Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Centretown Community Health Centre: Open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Sandy Hill Community Health Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 pm.
- Somerset West Community Health Centre: Open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday
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
Ottawa reports most new COVID-19 cases in nearly three weeks
Ottawa Public Health reported nine new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the most in a single day since July 3.
However, hospitalizations remain at zero and the number of active cases remains near a low not seen since the first wave more than 16 months ago.
City offering mobile vaccination teams to workplaces, places of worship
Employers, community and religious groups and other organizations can now request mobile vaccination teams to administer doses on-site, at a location of their choosing.
“This program is intended to help reduce barriers for residents who have not yet received the vaccine by working with community leaders to provide comfortable, convenient and easily accessible options for vaccination,” the city said in a news release Thursday.
The COVID-19 vaccine immunization clinic at the Nepean Sportsplex in Ottawa, Ont. (CTV News Ottawa)
Two doses of Pfizer, AstraZeneca shots effective against Delta variant, study finds
Two doses of Pfizer or AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine are nearly as effective against the highly transmissible Delta coronavirus variant as they are against the previously dominant Alpha variant, a study published on Wednesday showed.
A health worker holds up a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19 to be administered to members of the Italian Army at a vaccination center set up at the military barracks of Cecchignola, in Rome, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021. (Cecilia Fabiano/LaPresse via AP)
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