OTTAWA -- Ontario health officials are reporting a big drop in new confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ottawa.
In Wednesday's epidemiologic report, the province reported 39 cases of COVID-19, the lowest number so far in October, lower than the 54 cases reported on Oct. 11.
However, in its daily COVID-19 dashboard update, Ottawa Public Health issued a revised figure of 45 new cases, still the lowest so far in October, but slightly higher than what the province reported.
The new cases in Ottawa are among 721 new cases reported across Ontario, with a majority in the Toronto, York, and Peel regions.
According to Ottawa Public Health, there have been 5,707 total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa since the pandemic began.
No new deaths were reported on Wednesday. The death toll from COVID-19 in Ottawa stands at 297 residents.
HOSPITALIZATIONS
No new hospitalizations were reported on Wednesday, but the number remains at its highest level since mid-May.
OPH says there are 48 people in hospital with COVID-19 complications and 10 people in intensive care.
Of the people currently in the hospital, 10 are 90 years old or older (1 in ICU), five are in their 80s (1 in ICU), 14 are in their 70s (3 in ICU), 11 are in their 60s (4 in ICU), six are in their 50s (1 ICU), and two are in their 40s.
New monitoring figures from OPH show 99 per cent of acute hospital beds are occupied across the hospital system as of Oct. 12, down from 101 per cent on Oct. 7. Forty-four per cent if ICU beds are occupied and 16 per cent of ICU ventilator beds are occupied.
TESTING
Ontario performed 32,206 tests in the past 24 hours. The provincial backlog is 26,558, a slight increase over the backlog of 24,420 reported on Tuesday.
The Ottawa COVID-19 testing task force provided an update on testing figures for Oct. 13, including the backlog of tests remaining in Ottawa.
The task force said 2,067 swabs were taken at testing facilities in Ottawa on Oct. 13 and local labs processed 2,960 tests. The testing backlog jumped to 1,602 tests, after the task force reported it was down to 324 tests on Oct. 12.
ACTIVE CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA
The number of known active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa dropped on Wednesday driven by a large number of new recoveries and an overall low number of new infections.
OPH says it is aware of 769 active cases of COVID-19 currently in Ottawa, down from 839 in Tuesday's report.
115 more people have recovered from COVID-19, bringing the city's recovery rate to 4,641 cases since the pandemic began.
The number of active cases is the number of total laboratory-confirmed cases minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. A case is considered resolved 14 days after known symptom onset or positive test result.
CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA BY AGE CATEGORY
Here is a breakdown of all known COVID-19 cases in Ottawa by age category:
- 0-9 years old: 3 new cases (359 cases total)
- 10-19 years-old: 6 new cases (579 cases total)
- 20-29 years-old: 9 new cases (1,259 cases total)
- 30-39 years-old: 6 new cases (773 cases total)
- 40-49 years-old: 7 new cases (724 cases total)
- 50-59 years-old: 7 new cases (648 cases total)
- 60-69-years-old: 2 new cases (452 cases total)
- 70-79 years-old: 2 new cases (299 cases total)
- 80-89 years-old: 3 new cases (362 cases total)
- 90+ years old: 1 new case (249 cases total)
The ages of three cases are still unknown.
INSTITUTIONAL OUTBREAKS
Ottawa Public Health is reporting COVID-19 outbreaks at 73 institutions in Ottawa, including long-term care homes, retirement homes, daycares, hospitals and schools.
Three additional schools were placed in outbreak status: École élémentaire Catholique Saint-Joseph-d'Orléans, St. Jerome Catholic School, and St. Joseph High School.
The outbreak at Garneau high school has ended.
There are three active community outbreaks at unidentified workplaces.
The schools and childcare spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:
- Abraar Elementary School
- Adult High School ESL Childcare Program
- Andrew Fleck Children's Services – 2020-10-05
- Andrew Fleck Children's Services – 2020-10-06
- Andrew Fleck Children's Services – 2020-10-07
- Andrew Fleck Children's Services - 2020-10-12
- Centre parascholaire Alpha
- Children's Village of Ottawa Carleton (4)
- Dalhousie Parents Daycare
- École élémentaire Catholique Horizon-Jeunesse
- École élémentaire Catholique Sainte-Kateri
- École élémentaire Catholique Sainte-Marie
- École élémentaire Catholique Saint-Joseph-d'Orléans (NEW)
- École élémentaire publique Seraphin Marion
- École publique Le Transit Le CAP
- École secondaire Catholique Franco-Cité
- École secondaire publique Louis-Riel
- Garderie Tunney's Daycare
- La Coccinelle – Reine Des Bois
- Matreshka Child Care Centre (NEW)
- Service A L'Enfance Aladin, St-Anne
- St. Jerome Catholic School (NEW)
- St. Joseph High School (NEW)
- St. Luke School
The long-term care homes, retirement homes, hospitals, and other spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:
- Association pour intégration sociale d'Ottawa - 2
- Association pour intégration sociale d'Ottawa - 3
- Association pour intégration sociale d'Ottawa - 4
- Association pour intégration sociale d'Ottawa - 5
- Association pour intégration sociale d'Ottawa - 6
- Bairn Croft Residential Services - Oct. 5
- Bairn Croft Residential Services - French Hill Residence
- Bridlewood Trails
- Carlingview Manor
- Centre d'accueil Champlain
- Christian Horizons 9
- Cité Parkway Retirement Residence
- Colonel By retirement home
- Edinburgh Retirement Home
- Emergency Housing West
- Extendicare Medex
- Extendicare New Orchard Lodge
- Fairfield Retirement Home
- Forest Hill (NEW)
- Garry J. Armstrong
- Governor's Walk (NEW)
- Jardin Royal Garden (NEW)
- Laurier Manor
- Longfields Manor
- Madonna Care Community
- Manoir Marochel
- Montfort Hospital "3e Santé Mental"
- Montfort Hospital "4C Med"
- New Edinburgh Square Chartwell
- The Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus ER
- Perley Rideau Veterans' Health Centre - Gatineau Building
- Peter D. Clark
- Prince of Wales Manor
- Promenade Retirement Residence
- The Ravines retirement home
- Rideau Place
- Rooming House
- Royal Ottawa Place long-term care home
- Sisters of Charity retirement home
- St. Patrick's Home
- St. Vincent Hospital 5 North
- Starwood
- Tamir Foundation
- Waterford Retirement Community
- Welcome Home Residence
- West End Villa
- Westwood Building 1 retirement home
- Wildpine Retirement Home (NEW)
- Windsor Park retirement home
A single laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in a resident or staff member of a long-term care home, retirement home or shelter triggers an outbreak response, according to Ottawa Public Health. In childcare settings, a single confirmed, symptomatic case in a staff member, home daycare provider, or child triggers an outbreak.
Under provincial guidelines, a COVID-19 outbreak in a school is defined as two or more lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in students and/or staff in a school with an epidemiological link, within a 14-day period, where at least one case could have reasonably acquired their infection in the school (including transportation and before or after school care).