Press "Enter" to skip to content

Month: November 2023

Yukon court dismisses challenge of law used to enact COVID-19 rules

A Yukon judge has dismissed a legal challenge of the territory’s Civil Emergency Measures Act (CEMA), the legislation used to create and enforce public health rules and restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Seven plaintiffs sued the territorial government in 2020, arguing that CEMA was unconstitutional and gave politicians too much power without sufficient oversight. They wanted the legislation struck down.

Comments closed

A Lot of Deer Carry COVID. Should That Worry People?

COVID hasn’t just colonized billions of humans. The virus has entered North America’s white-tailed deer populations, transforming one of the largest remaining wild mammal populations on Earth into another rapidly evolving reservoir for COVID.

Comments closed

Total hospitalized with COVID-19 in B.C. climbs in latest weekly update

The number of people with COVID-19 in B.C. hospitals rose this week, while other data released Thursday by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control was a mixed bag.

There were 263 test-positive COVID patients in provincial hospitals Thursday, up from 244 last week, an increase of 7.7 per cent.

Comments closed

COVID outbreaks continuing as Ottawa heads for repeat of triple-demic

Hospitals continue to deal with multiple COVID‑19 outbreaks in Ottawa as rising case counts, outbreaks and wastewater data indicate the city is headed into an anticipated fall viral triple-demic.

For the first time this season, there are signs that Influenza A is beginning to circulate widely in Ottawa, wastewater surveillance shows. For now, though, COVID‑19 remains the dominant and most destructive respiratory illness circulating, along with RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) to a lesser extent.

Comments closed

Facility-wide COVID-19 outbreak declared at South Muskoka Memorial Hospital

South Muskoka Memorial Hospital (SMMH) has closed its doors to visitors following a facility-wide COVID-19 outbreak.

In collaboration with the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit, the COVID-19 outbreak was declared at the Bracebridge site after eight patients and six staff across four inpatient units tested positive.

Comments closed

COVID-19 et influenza : pourquoi fait-on un nouvel appel à la vaccination?

On Wednesday, Quebec’s National Director of Public Health, Dr. Luc Boileau, issued a new call for vaccination, due to a “serious” circulation of COVID-19 and an imminent wave of influenza in Quebec. Here are seven questions to understand why vaccination remains an important tool in the fight against these infectious diseases.

Comments closed

Ottawa-Gatineau community update | 2023‑11‑15

📈 The COVID-19 wastewater viral signal for Ottawa has increased substantially (+1,246%) since a low on July 12, 2023.

⚠️ The 7-day average of percent positivity is extremely high (18.74%).

🏥 Confirmed COVID-19 patients in Ottawa hospitals: 178 ( increase of 65).

Since September 1, 2023, there have been 37 COVID-19 outbreaks at Ottawa’s hospitals, leading to three recent deaths and 314 known cases of COVID-19.

Comments closed

COVID-19 cases show major weekly rise, OPH says

Ottawa Public Health on Wednesday reported three more deaths due to COVID-19, as well as 207 new cases over the seven days ending Monday.

The new data collected Tuesday brings the total number of deaths to 1,136, while 94,917 cases of COVID-19 have been registered since the pandemic began.

Comments closed

Le Dr Boileau lance un nouvel appel à la vaccination contre la COVID-19 et l’influenza

Citing a serial circulation of COVID-19 and an imminent wave of influenza in Quebec, National Director of Public Health, Dr. Luc Boileau, invites those at…

Comments closed

Substantial decrease noted in severe respiratory illness during first 2 years of pandemic

Compared to the 3 years prior to the pandemic, children with medically complex conditions and otherwise healthy children saw decreases in severe non-COVID respiratory illnesses in 2020 and 2021, the authors of a study yesterday note in JAMA Network Open.

The cross-sectional study, based on 139,078 respiratory hospitalizations in Canada, shows that the mitigation efforts used during the first several months of COVID-19 likely prevented serious outcomes from respiratory illness complications, including hospitalizations, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and death.

Comments closed

Manning panel gives 90 recommendations on Alberta’s COVID‑19 pandemic response

A panel reviewing Alberta’s COVID-19 response is calling for rule changes to ensure the province’s premier and cabinet have the last word in future crises, with help from a new senior science officer.

Comments closed

More women than men died in Canada during the first months of the COVID pandemic, StatCan finds

A new report from Statistics Canada has found that more women died of COVID-19 than men did during the earliest months of the pandemic.

Comments closed