Here's a list of possible COVID-19 exposures in Ottawa

With the rapid spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, Ottawa Public Health has launched a web page to notify people who may have been exposed to the virus.

Previously, the health unit would issue individual public notices when it wasn’t possible to identify everyone who may have been exposed at gatherings and events.

But as the variant puts strain on Ottawa Public Health's contact tracing efforts, they are compiling possible exposures into a single list.

The list doesn’t include every possible COVID-19 exposure that Ottawa Public Health is investigating. For privacy reasons, Ottawa Public Health doesn’t always disclose the location of possible COVID-19 exposures.

But they do when it will help quickly notify potential contacts and reduce the risk of further transmission.

“Most locations listed have the required public health measures in place, but despite these measures, there is still a risk of COVID-19 transmission,” they said.

Earlier this week, Ottawa Public Health asked people who tested positive to notify high-risk contacts immediately because of a backlog in contact tracing.

"To address this backlog of cases, Ottawa Public Health is asking individuals who test positive for COVID-19 to self-isolate and notify your high-risk contacts immediately of your positive COVID-19 status, as there may be a delay in Ottawa Public Health contacting you," Dr. Vera Etches said in a statement on Monday.

Here are the exposures to COVID-19 under investigation in Ottawa:

None currently under investigation.

If you do not have symptoms of COVID-19:

You should not go for testing.

If you are fully vaccinated, you do not need to self-isolate. If you are partially vaccinated or unvaccinated, you must self-isolate for 10 days from the last exposure.

If you have any COVID-19 symptoms:

You should self-isolate and get tested immediately even if you are fully vaccinated for COVID-19. A list of testing sites in Ottawa is available on our COVID-19 Testing page.

Here’s when you can end self-isolation if you have symptoms:

If you are fully vaccinated and got tested: You must self-isolate until your symptoms have been improved for 24 hours (48 hours for gastrointestinal symptoms) and you do not have fever and you received a negative test result

If you are partially vaccinated or unvaccinated and got tested: You must self-isolate for 10 days from the last exposure, even if your test result is negative and your symptoms have improved.

If you did not get tested: You must self-isolate for 10 days from your symptom onset, regardless of your vaccination status.

More information for cases and contacts of COVID-19 is available on Ottawa Public Health's Information for those who test positive for COVID-19 and high-risk contacts page.