COVID-19 hospitalizations in Ontario rose nearly 11 per cent over the last week
The number of COVID-19 positive patients being treated in Ontario hospitals has risen by nearly 11 per cent week-over week amid signs that viral activity levels are beginning to pick up.
The latest data from the Ministry of Health suggests that there are now 1,265 people in Ontario hospitals testing positive for COVID-19, up from 1,141 at this time last week. The number of those patients in intensive care also rose week-over-week, going from 129 to 133.
It is the highest number of COVID-19 positive patients being treated at Ontario hospitals at any one point since Aug. 26.
It also comes as wastewater surveillance data from Public Health Ontario begins to point towards an increase in the number of active infections in most parts of the province.
In fact, data released last week suggested that the so-called wastewater signal in Ontario has been climbing since around the second week of September but remains lower than where it was during a rare summer wave of the pandemic in July.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we are starting to see a rise in cases. I mean it's hard to know because we just don't have that same degree of community level testing and you're really reading the tea leaves with hospitalization data, percentage of tests that are positive and wastewater signal but if you look over in European settings they are seeing an uptick in cases and hospitalizations,” infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch told CP24 earlier on Thursday. “We chatted about this for months and months and months (a fall wave). We knew this was going to happen.”
In the latest batch of data released by the ministry, most public health indicators do appear to be worsening as the weather cools and more people head indoors.
The number of new cases detected through PCR testing over the last week stood at 8,627, rising for the third week in a row.
The positivity rate on PCR testing also went from 11.98 per cent last week to 12.42 per cent this week.
There were fewer active outbreaks in long-term care homes and retirement homes this week than last but there was an increase in the number of active outbreaks in hospitals and shelters.
The ministry also added 72 net new deaths to Ontario’s COVID-19 tally on Thursday, bringing the number to 14,351.
More than 4,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19 have been added to Ontario’s tally so far in 2022.
Meanwhile, earlier this week Ontario made all adults 18 and up eligible for a new bivalent booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine specifically aimed at Omicron so long as they are at least three months removed from their last dose.
Speaking with CP24, Bogoch said that the new booster “will do a lot of good in terms of protecting you against severe infection” and will “hopefully bring back some more durable protection against infection and onward transmission.”
“That is what we saw much earlier in the pandemic with the original virus,” he said. “It just takes a bit of time to get the data.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Trump says Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and hate 'their religion,' igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Freddie Mercury's home is on the market for first time since 1980 minus his 'exquisite clutter'
Freddie Mercury's sanctuary in London, where he lived the last decade of his life, is on sale for the first time in nearly half a century -- minus his "exquisite clutter."
'The lost season': Winter comes to a close as Canada's warmest on record
The warmest winter on record could have far-reaching effects on everything from wildfire season to erosion, climatologists say, while offering a preview of what the season could resemble in the not-so-distant future unless steps are taken to cut greenhouse gas emissions.