Tag: Canada
Manitoba has detected an unknown number of cases of the latest Omicron subvariant, EG.5, of COVID-19 that has become dominant in the United States.
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What to know about EG.5, the latest Omicron subvariant in Canada
The hyperinfectious Omicron subvariant called EG.5 has been designated a variant of interest by the World Health Organization (WHO).
EG.5 has been circulating in Canada since at least May, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). The subvariant and its offshoots are estimated to have made up 36 per cent of cases in Canada between July 30 and August 5, according to PHAC.
Comments closedTopic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia
Dozens sign open letter urging ‘safe return to school’ amid respiratory illness concerns
With students returning to B.C. classrooms in four weeks, an open letter to the province is outlining five things the signatories say must be addressed to ensure “a safe return to school.”
Comments closedTopic: wastewater monitoringView all posts for the topic: wastewater monitoring
What’s the future of wastewater testing for COVID‑19?
Wastewater surveillance became an important tool for detecting COVID-19 outbreaks in communities throughout the pandemic, and it continues to be used in search for coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 as well as other pathogens.
But it’s unclear whether current levels of government funding to monitor wastewater for SARS-CoV-2 will continue beyond next year. Experts are calling on the federal government to create a standardized system for wastewater surveillance to bolster and replace the patchwork being used today.
Comments closedTopic: hospital-acquired infectionsView all posts for the topic: hospital-acquired infections
Hospital-acquired COVID infections worsened as the pandemic progressed, research finds
The chances of becoming infected with COVID-19 while hospitalized increased as the pandemic progressed, according to recent Canadian research.
In fact, significantly more Canadians became infected with hospital-acquired COVID-19 during the fifth and sixth waves of the pandemic — the first two Omicron waves from late 2021 until the spring of 2022 — than during earlier waves, according to the study published in the journal JAMA Network Open. Researchers looked at cases of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 between March 2020 and May 2022.
Comments closedTopic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia
B.C. woman sentenced to 18 months probation for coughing at grocery employee during pandemic
A British Columbia judge has sentenced a Vancouver Island woman to 18 months of probation for deliberately coughing in the face of a grocery store employee and shoving her shopping cart into another worker during the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Comments closedTopic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines
Updated COVID-19 vaccines recommended for fall boosters, Canada’s vaccine advisers say
The country’s national vaccine advisers are recommending Canadians get another COVID-19 booster shot this fall, with updated vaccines expected in the months ahead.
The next round of vaccines will likely be monovalent — meaning they will specifically target the Omicron family of sub-lineages that are still circulating globally, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) said Tuesday.
Leave a commentTopic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia
Should This Be Back-to-School Wear?
Health-care workers are warning a lack of masking could lead to a new COVID wave come fall.
Comments closedTopic: wastewater monitoringView all posts for the topic: wastewater monitoring
Wastewater sampling in Canada suggests COVID case rate 19 times higher than reported
At the peak of a SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant wave in Ontario, wastewater sampling conducted before the surge suggested that COVID-19 cases were 19 times higher than reported because of changes in clinical testing.
Continue readingWastewater sampling in Canada suggests COVID case rate 19 times higher than reported
Comments closed Topic: N95 respiratorsView all posts for the topic: N95 respirators
Public Health should offer N95 masks
Re: Heavy smoke, smog wallop Ottawa, cancelling Dragon Boat, Indigenous festivals, June 25.
Thanks to climate change, we’re experiencing unprecedented hazardous air quality. Concentrations of pollutants have been an order of magnitude greater than the levels in major cities. And more smoke is on the way.
Ottawa Public Health should follow the example of public health organizations in other cities: it should distribute N95 respirators to Ottawa residents. Huron Perth Public Health is now offering respirators to residents who are at high risk for respiratory issues.
Comments closedTopic: universal maskingView all posts for the topic: universal masking
Calgary doctor to challenge AHS mask policy change in court
Comments closedYou can’t be putting the responsibility for basic measures to protect people with disabilities and chronic disease… on them when a very minor, reasonable, easy-to-do accommodation can be just kept in place.
Topic: cognitive issuesView all posts for the topic: cognitive issues
New imaging technique captures COVID-19’s impact on the brain
Comments closedSome may think COVID-19 affects just the lungs. What was found is that this new MRI technique that we created is very good at identifying changes to the brain due to COVID-19. COVID-19 changes the white matter in the brain.
Topic: rapid testsView all posts for the topic: rapid tests
Ontario to stop free COVID-19 rapid test program in pharmacies, grocery stores
An Ontario program that distributes free rapid tests for COVID-19 at grocery stores and pharmacies will end after this month.
Comments closedTopic: indoor air qualityView all posts for the topic: indoor air quality
Parents ask Ottawa’s largest school board to monitor air quality
As children are on the list of those most affected by wildfire smoke, some parents are concerned about sending their kids to school due to poor air quality.
During Tuesday night’s Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) budget meeting, Ecology Ottawa Board Chair Katie Gibbs requested that funds go to ensure better ventilation in schools.
Comments closedTopic: Ottawa-GatineauView all posts for the topic: Ottawa-Gatineau
Une première clinique de COVID longue en Outaouais
A first-ever long COVID clinic opens in the Outaouais.
Comments closedTopic: NunavutView all posts for the topic: Nunavut
Auditor general: GN may have wasted up to 31 per cent of COVID‑19 vaccines
Nunavut’s Health Department may have wasted one-third of its COVID-19 vaccines, according to a report presented Tuesday to the Nunavut legislative assembly by Canada’s auditor general Karen Hogan.
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