COVID-19 indicators in Ottawa holding steady, but public health officials urge caution

OTTAWA -

Ottawa's key COVID-19 indicators continue to hold steady, but public health officials are warning people not let their guard down as the colder weather approaches.

Ottawa Public Health reported 28 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, after 27 on Wednesday and 15 on Tuesday. Hospitalizations remain low: there are four COVID-19 patients in hospital, including one in intensive care. All are at least 70 years old.

The reproduction value remains below one, which means the spread of the virus is slowing. And more than 90 per cent of eligible residents have at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

But as more activities shift indoors, OPH officials are warning people to exercise caution.

"As more restrictions are gradually lifted, it may be tempting to let our guards down. But let me be clear: the pandemic is not over," said Dr. Brent Moloughney, the city's associate medical officer of health.

There is concern, he said, that as the weather cools and activities shift indoors, transmission could once again increase.

"The worry is things going out of balance again as things change," he said. "With the cooler, wetter weather...tends to push us indoors. That's a higher-risk setting, so therefore we have to compensate for that."

That means ensuring people you're gathering with are vaccinated, and if they aren't, making sure people are masking and distancing.

Moloughney said the city continues to see COVID transmission in situations when people are starting to let their guard down regarding masks, physical distancing, or staying at home when they have symptoms. This is most commonly happening at workplaces, sports games and social gatherings.

Provincewide, there are 403 new cases and three new deaths on Thursday.

OTTAWA'S KEY COVID-19 STATISTICS

Ottawa Public Health data:

• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (Oct. 20 to Oct. 26): 18.5 (up from 17.9)  
• Positivity rate in Ottawa (Oct. 20 to Oct. 26): 1.6 per cent (unchanged from Oct. 18 to 24)
• Reproduction number (Seven day average): 0.89

Reproduction values greater than 1 indicate the virus is spreading and each case infects more than one contact. If it is less than 1, it means spread is slowing.

UNVACCINATED CASES

There are 197 people in hospital across Ontario with COVID-19; 169 of them are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status. Twenty-eight are fully vaccinated.

Of the 132 Ontarians in intensive care fighting COVID-19, 116 are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.

COVID-19 VACCINES IN OTTAWA

Ottawa Public Health updates vaccine numbers on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

As of Wednesday:

• Ottawa residents with 1 dose (12+): 830,811 (+950)
• Ottawa residents with 2 doses (12+): 795,138 (+1,664)
• Share of population 12 and older with at least one dose: 90 per cent
• Share of population 12 and older fully vaccinated: 86 per cent
• Total doses received in Ottawa: 1,372,642 

*Total doses received does not include doses shipped to pharmacies and primary care clinics, but statistics on Ottawa residents with one or two doses includes anyone with an Ottawa postal code who was vaccinated anywhere in Ontario. 

ACTIVE CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA

There are 221 active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Thursday, up from 214 on Wednesday.

Ottawa Public Health reported 21 more newly resolved cases of COVID-19. The total number of resolved cases of coronavirus in Ottawa is 29,960.

The number of active cases is the number of total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. A case is considered resolved 14 days after known symptom onset or positive test result.

 

COVID-19 Cases in Ottawa
Infogram

HOSPITALIZATIONS IN OTTAWA

There are four people in Ottawa area hospitals with COVID-19 related illnesses on Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday. But two people in their 40s have been released from hospital since Wednesday, and two people older than 70 have been admitted.

One person is in an Ottawa ICU with an active case of COVID-19.

Age categories of people in hospital:

• 0-9: 0
• 10-19: 0
• 20-29: 0
• 30-39: 0
• 40-49: 0 (-2)
• 50-59: 0
• 60-69: 0
• 70-79: 3 (1 in ICU) (+1)
• 80-89: 1 (+1)
• 90+: 0

(Ottawa Public Health is now reporting people in hospital with an "active" infection)

COVID-19 CASES IN OTTAWA BY AGE CATEGORY

• 0-9 years old: One new case (2,874 total cases)
• 10-19 years-old: Five new cases (4,099 total cases)
• 20-29 years-old: Three new cases (6,877 total cases)
• 30-39 years-old: Five new cases (4,727 total cases)
• 40-49 years-old: Five new cases (4,043 total cases)
• 50-59 years-old: Three new cases (3,530 total cases)
• 60-69-years-old: Four new cases (2,076 total cases)
• 70-79 years-old: One new case (1,146 total cases)
• 80-89 years-old: One new case (876 total cases)
• 90+ years old: Zero new cases (533 total cases)
• Unknown: Zero new cases (3 cases total)

VARIANTS OF CONCERN

Ottawa Public Health data:

• Total Alpha (B.1.1.7) cases: 6,849
• Total Beta (B.1.351) cases: 513
• Total Gamma (P.1) cases: 55
• Total Delta (B.1.617.2) cases: 807 (+1)
• Total variants of concern/mutation cases: 11,394
• Deaths linked to variants/mutations: 108

*OPH notes that that VOC and mutation trends must be treated with caution due to the varying time required to complete VOC testing and/or genomic analysis following the initial positive test for SARS-CoV-2. Test results may be completed in batches and data corrections or updates can result in changes to case counts that may differ from past reports.

COVID-19 TESTING IN OTTAWA

The Ottawa COVID-19 Testing Taskforce says 2,021 swabs were taken at local assessment centres on Oct. 26 and labs performed 3.065 tests.

The average turnaround from the time a swab is taken at an assessment site to the result is 25 hours.

COVID-19 CASES AROUND THE REGION

• Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 22 new cases
• Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: Three new cases
• Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington Public Health: 19 new cases
• Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit: Four new cases
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit: Zero new cases

COVID-19 OUTBREAKS

Ottawa Public Health reporting COVID-19 outbreaks at institutions and community outbreaks in Ottawa.

Community outbreaks:

• Workplace – Restaurant: Two outbreaks

Schools and childcare spaces currently experiencing outbreaks: (nine elementary schools, two child care centres)

• Pinecrest Queensway Headstart Child Care (Oct. 12) 
• École élémentaire publique Charlotte Lemieux (Oct. 14) 
• D. Roy Kennedy Public School (Oct. 15) 
• St. Monica Elementary School (Oct. 17) 
• Child Care - Barrhaven (Oct. 18)
• Berrigan Elementary School (Oct. 18)
• St. Elizabeth Ann Seton elementary school (Oct. 19)
• Grandir Ensemble child care George-Étienne-Cartier (Oct. 20) 
• École élémentaire publique Des Sentiers (Oct. 21) 
• École élémentaire catholique George-Étienne-Cartier (Oct. 22) 
• Assumption Catholic Elementary School (Oct. 25)

Healthcare and congregate settings experiencing outbreaks:

• The Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus - A2 Unit (Oct. 26)