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Month: December 2023

‘A vicious cycle’: Low Covid-19 vaccination rates lead to fewer doses at pediatric offices. Now, some parents can’t find it

As of November 25, less than 3% of children 6 months to 4 years and 10% of children 12 to 17 have received the new shot, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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More than a year after her daughter’s death at Yorkton hospital, Regina mother still looking for answers

It’s been more than a year since Gwen Gilbert first raised questions about her daughter’s death at the hospital in Yorkton, Sask.

Teary-eyed, Gilbert echoed the same questions at the Saskatchewan Legislature on Wednesday.

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Ottawa-Gatineau community update | 2023‑12‑06

📈 The COVID-19 wastewater viral signal for Ottawa has increased substantially (+1,916%) since a low on July 12, 2023. It is extremely high.

⚠️ The 7-day average of percent positivity is extremely high (17.74%).

🏥 Confirmed COVID-19 patients in Ottawa hospitals: 156 ( decrease of 4).

In 2023, there have been 124 COVID-19 outbreaks at Ottawa’s hospitals so far, leading to 18 deaths and 995 known cases of COVID-19.

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Low rates of COVID vaccination putting the elderly at risk: medical officer of health

Nearly half of people over 80 in Ottawa have not received the latest COVID-19 vaccine, leaving them at risk for severe outcomes if they become infected, Ottawa’s medical officer of health is warning.

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COVID, flu vaccine uptake low in Alberta heading into holiday season

With vaccination numbers lagging and the holiday season approaching, health experts are calling on Albertans to roll up their sleeves for their flu and COVID-19 shots.

As of Nov. 25, 17 people in Alberta had died of the flu during this respiratory virus season, and close to 500 were hospitalized, according to provincial data. In the same time frame, 245 deaths and almost 2,300 hospitalizations were tied to COVID-19.

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Nearly half of COVID survivors in Africa have lingering symptoms, data reveal

A systematic review and meta-analysis estimates a nearly 50% long-COVID rate months after infection in Africa, with psychiatric conditions the most common manifestations.

Published today in Scientific Reports, the February 2023 literature search and analysis involved 25 observational, English language long-COVID studies with 29,213 infected African patients.

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Now is not the time to end Covid-related services in BC

After 2023, funding for Covid-related services is set to end in BC.

For nearly four years now, British Columbians have been grappling with Covid-19. We’re currently aided by health management initiatives like vaccination, testing, and protective equipment for healthcare workers. Since 2021, these measures have been funded by BC’s Pandemic Recovery Contingencies, a three-year plan that also sustains economic recovery programs and supports for vulnerable community members.

This plan expires at the end of 2023. After that, our government anticipates that “most initiatives will wind down or be integrated into existing government programs.”

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Randy Hillier’s Charter case against charges from COVID-19 lockdown protests in Cornwall, Kemptville dismissed

A judge of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has dismissed former MPP Randy Hillier’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms challenge against Reopening Ontario Act charges laid against him in the spring of 2021.

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How to stay informed on COVID-19

BC public health has made it too confusing to keep up on COVID-19 information. With the government changing information about COVID-19 data and obscuring data collection, knowingly downplaying risks about transmission, and overall unclear messaging, it’s no wonder people are misinformed.

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Ontario hospital ERs have closed 867 times so far this year, health coalition says

Emergency departments and other hospital services have closed a record number of times in Ontario so far in 2023, according to a new Ontario Health Coalition report being described as “staggering.”

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Health Canada approves updated Novavax vaccine to protect against COVID-19

Health Canada has authorized an adapted vaccine from Novavax to prevent COVID-19 in people age 12 and older.

The vaccine uses a traditional approach to defend the body against COVID.

It contains a version of the viral spike protein and is also authorized as a booster for those 18 and older, according to Health Canada’s webpage.

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Study: School air sampling worked as well as other methods in tracking COVID, flu

Air sampling was as effective in monitoring COVID-19 and influenza A (IAV) activity as three other methods in a Wisconsin school district from September 2022 to January 2023, according to a study published today in JAMA Network Open.

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Renew pandemic support in BC’s 2024 Budget

Read DoNoHarm BC’s 2024/25 provincial budget recommendations for pandemic resilience and economic recovery. Then email your MLA ASAP! The final budget will be announced on February 22.

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COVID-19 hospitalizations higher than last December, MOH warns

Ottawa’s medical officer of health is warning that COVID-19 levels in the community are high and the number of people in hospital because of the disease is higher than it was at this time last year.

In her verbal report to the Board of Health on Monday, Dr. Vera Etches said there is a lot of COVID-19 in the community.

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Small study finds brain alterations after COVID Omicron infection

Researchers in China report thinning of the gray matter and other changes in certain parts of the brain in 61 men after COVID-19 Omicron infection.

For the study, published late last week in JAMA Network Open, the researchers evaluated 61 men before and after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in January 2023. The men had been part of a larger cohort who had undergone magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychiatric screenings before infection in August and September 2022. Average age was 43 years.

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Ottawa Public Health wrapping up COVID-19 operations, cutting pandemic staff

Ottawa Public Health will layoff most of its COVID-19 staff by the end of the year and wrap up its immunization programming at the end of March, as the Ontario government stops reimbursing for extraordinary costs related to the pandemic.

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Conspiracy theories are popular in Canada, especially among conservatives: poll

The Earth is flat. We have been secretly contacted by intelligent beings from other planets. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin did not land on the moon in 1969. They may sound like bizarre statements, but a new poll suggests a sizable number of Canadians believe in these and other conspiracy theories.

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