Ottawa sees drop in COVID-19 hospitalizations heading into the weekend

A discarded face mask is seen stuck in a bush in Ottawa. May 15, 2022. (CTV News Ottawa)

The city of Ottawa is seeing a drop in COVID-19 related hospitalizations heading into the weekend.

Ottawa Public Health is reporting 15 Ottawa residents in hospital because of an active COVID-19 infection on Friday, down from 17 on Thursday. One person is in the ICU.

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.

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

• The Ottawa Hospital: 53 patients
• Queensway Carleton Hospital: Four patients
• Montfort Hospital: 12 patients
• CHEO: Four patients

OPH reported 47 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Friday. Daily 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.

No new deaths were reported across Ottawa for a second straight day.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in Ottawa in March 2020, there have been 73,319 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 804 deaths.

Public Health Ontario reported 15 new COVID-19 related deaths across Ontario on Friday. There are 948 people in hospital with COVID-19, including 154 in the intensive care unit.

OTTAWA'S KEY COVID-19 STATISTICS

• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (May 19 to 25): 27.9 (down from 29.6)   
• Seven-day average of positivity rate in the Ottawa community, excluding long-term care homes (May 26): 8.02 per cent
• Known active cases: 464 (-4)

COVID-19 VACCINES IN OTTAWA

Updated May 16.

• Ottawa residents with 1 dose (5+): 916,525 
• Ottawa residents with 2 doses (5+): 880,837 
• Ottawa residents with 3 doses (12+): 576,065 
• 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: 63 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: 6 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: 21 in hospital, 1 in ICU
• Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington Public Health: 15 in hospital, 4 in ICU
• Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit: 7 in hospital, 3 in ICU
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit: 9 in hospital, 0 in ICU
• Outaouais (Gatineau and western Quebec): 54 in hospital, 2 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 currently reporting active outbreaks in the following locations:

• 6 long-term care homes
• 5 retirement homes
• 7 hospital units
• 2 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.