COVID-19 spread increasing in Ottawa, but hospitalizations stable

People walk down a busy street wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Yoav Aziz on Unsplash)

Ottawa COVID-19 hospitalizations remained steady over the weekend, but the city's medical officer of health is warning that levels of the virus in the community are rising.

Dr. Vera Etches said that wastewater indicators are at a moderate level, but are increasing. So are lab per cent positivity and new confirmed outbreaks.

"Three out of the four key indicators are now increasing," Etches told the city's board of health Monday night. "This tells us that the level of COVID in our community is rising.

Graph representing COVID-19 wastewater viral signal in Ottawa. Data last reported 2022-06-17. (613covid.ca/wastewater/)

Ottawa Public Health is reporting five hospitalizations from COVID in Ottawa, down from seven on Friday. The health unit is now reporting COVID-19 statistics on Tuesdays and Fridays, instead of every weekday.

There have been no new deaths since Friday and no one is in the ICU.

Etches said the rising indicators are a reminder that people should isolate when they're sick and get the latest booster dose for which they're eligible. Only 56 per cent of the population has received a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, she said, as opposed to around 90 per cent that have two doses.

She also said people under 60, who aren't eligible right now in Ontario for a fourth dose, should learn news on when they'll become eligible within a month or so. That's when she expects the National Advisory Council on Immunization to issue its recommendations, guidance that Ontario tends to follow.

OPH hospitalization figures only represent Ottawa residents who are in hospital because of an active case of COVID-19. Local hospitals report higher figures, which include patients who were admitted for reasons other than COVID-19 but have tested positive and patients who are not from Ottawa.

COVID-19 hospitalization in Ottawa in 2022
Infogram

Here is a look at how many COVID-19 patients are in each hospital:

• The Ottawa Hospital: 21 patients
• Queensway Carleton Hospital: Six patients
• Montfort Hospital: Five patients
• CHEO: Two patients

Ottawa Public Health is reporting 150 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa since Friday. Case counts are considered an underrepresentation of the true amount of COVID-19 in the community due to provincial restrictions on who can access a PCR test.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in Ottawa in March 2020, there have been 74,446 laboratory-confirmed cases, including 817 deaths.

OTTAWA'S KEY COVID-19 STATISTICS

• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (June 13 to 19): 30.4 (down from 31.5) 
• Seven-day average of positivity rate in the Ottawa community, excluding long-term care homes (June 19): 10.7 per cent (up from 8.8 per cent)
• Known active cases: 415 (-36)

COVID-19 VACCINES IN OTTAWA

Updated June 20.

• Ottawa residents with 1 dose (5+): 917,832
• Ottawa residents with 2 doses (5+): 883,284
• Ottawa residents with 3 doses (12+): 580,600
• Share of population five and older with at least one dose: 92 per cent
• Share of population five and older fully vaccinated: 89 per cent
• Share of population 12 and older with at least three doses: 64 per cent

*Statistics on Ottawa residents with one or more doses include anyone with an Ottawa postal code who was vaccinated anywhere in Ontario.

AROUND THE REGION

• Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 3 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: 3 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington Public Health: 7 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit: 0 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit: 3 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Outaouais (Gatineau and western Quebec): 39 in hospital, 0 in ICU

These figures are based on the latest data from each respective health unit at the time of publishing.

COVID-19 OUTBREAKS

Ottawa Public Health is reporting active outbreaks in the following locations:

• 7 long-term care homes
• 5 retirement homes
• 4 hospital units
• 0 other congregate settings (group homes, supported independent living, etc.)

OPH no longer reports outbreaks in schools and childcare settings nor community outbreaks, such as those linked to local businesses, religious institutions, or sports and recreation activities.

A full list of locations with active outbreaks is available on OPH's COVID-19 dashboard.