COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Sept. 27, 2021
Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.
Fast Facts:
- Ottawa Hospital now requires all visitors to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination
- Ottawa Catholic School Board has highest staff COVID-19 vaccination rate in Ottawa
- School-aged kids make up largest portion of active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa
- COVID-19 hospitalizations and active cases increase in Ottawa on Sunday
COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):
- New COVID-19 cases: 79 cases on Sunday
- Total COVID-19 cases: 29,670
- COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 34.6
- Positivity rate in Ottawa: 2.7 per cent (seven-day average)
- Reproduction Number: 1.05 (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:
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
- Temporary Pop-Up Testing COVID-19 Assessment at McNabb Arena on Percy Street: Open daily until Sept. 29 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- 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 5:30 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 schools in Ottawa and eastern Ontario. All students, teachers and school staff must complete the COVID-19 School 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
Visitors must show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination to enter the Ottawa Hospital
Bring your proof of COVID-19 vaccination with you if you are visiting someone at the Ottawa Hospital.
Starting today, Ottawa's largest hospital will require visitors to be fully vaccinated to enter the Civic Campus, the General Campus and the Riverside Campus.
The hospital says the vaccination requirement is only for visitors, not patients visiting the hospital for appointments or medical care. People accompanying someone to the hospital for a medical appointment will need to be fully vaccinated.
File photo of The Ottawa Hospital. (CTV News Ottawa)
Ottawa Catholic School Board has highest staff COVID-19 vaccination rate in Ottawa
The Ottawa Catholic School Board has the highest vaccination rate for employees among Ottawa's four school boards.
As the board prepares to debate a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for staff, visitors and volunteers, statistics show 92.9 per cent of employees say they are fully vaccinated.
The Ottawa Carleton District School Board says 88.7 per cent of its 11,923 employees are fully vaccinated, while seven employees have been granted exemptions
The Conseil des ecoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario reports 69 per cent of its 2,842 employees are fully vaccinated. At the Conseil des ecoles catholiques de Centre-Est, 63.44 per cent (3,337 people) of the board's 5,260 employees say they are fully vaccinated.
School-aged kids make up largest portion of active COVID case in Ottawa
School-aged children now make up the largest portion of active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa.
Approximately 35 per cent of the 474 active cases in Ottawa right now are in those under 19-years-old. Children 9 and under account for 110 active cases of novel coronavirus, the highest number of active cases among age groups.
A steady stream of parents visited Ottawa's COVID-19 testing centres on Sunday to get a COVID-19 test for their children.
"I really worry that they have it, given that they go to school every day," said a parent.
Students wear face masks as they attend class on the first day of school in Montreal, Tuesday, August 31, 2021, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues in Canada and around the world. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
COVID-19 hospitalizations and active cases in Ottawa up on Sunday
Ottawa Public Health reported 79 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Sunday, and no new deaths linked to the virus.
Since the first case of novel coronavirus in March 2020, there have been 29,670 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, including 595 deaths.
There are now 15 people in Ottawa-area hospitals with COVID-19 related illnesses, including eight in the ICU.
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