Last summer’s smoky skies could make a return this year, as officials say Canada is on track for a repeat of the 2023 wildfire season – the worst on record.
In Ottawa, wildfire smoke blanketed the capital several times last summer and there were multiple open air fire bans and even concerns Canada Day fireworks could trigger a blaze.
Comments closedThe Durham Region Health Department is investigating a confirmed case of measles in the region after an adult was exposed during a recent trip abroad.
In a news release on Wednesday, the health department confirmed that “a local adult” is currently isolating at home after acquiring the illness, but it is not mentioned where in Durham region the adult resides.
Durham health has determined that individuals who travelled on the Royal Jordanian Airlines RJ271 flight on Thursday, March 28 departing from Jordan at 10:43 a.m. and arriving to Pearson airport on the same day at 5:24 p.m. local time — may have been exposed to the virus.
Comments closedNew guidelines suggest certain high-risk groups could benefit from having another dose of a COVID-19 vaccine this spring — and more frequent shots in general — while the broader population could be entering once-a-year territory, much like an annual flu shot.
Medical experts told CBC News that falling behind on the latest shots can come with health risks, particularly for individuals who are older or immunocompromised.
“Even when the risk of infection starts to increase, the vaccines still do a really good job at decreasing risk of severe disease,” said McMaster University researcher and immunologist Matthew Miller.
Comments closedThe Ottawa Public Library will be providing free solar eclipse glasses to residents in anticipation of a partial solar eclipse on April 8.
While supplies last, the glasses that provide proper protection for eclipse viewing will include a printed handout with safety instructions.
The City of Ottawa says it will launch the initiative on Thursday, March 28. All library branches will have total solar eclipse glasses available for the public, starting when branches open on Thursday.
Officials say quantities of glasses are limited, so branches will run out before April 8.
Comments closedHuron Perth Healthcare Alliance (HPHA) is updating its masking policy.
“Based upon the most recent Public Health Ontario guidance, updates will be made…” read a release from the organization.
Effective immediately, masking will be “welcomed but no longer required,” in many clinical areas of HPHA hospital sites with the exception of emergency departments where masking is still required.
Masking will also still be required for anybody who has symptoms of respiratory infection such as cough, fever and sore throat. If you’re accompanying somebody with symptoms, you must also wear a mask.
Comments closedPublic health officials say they were able to notify all individuals with direct exposure to the third confirmed case of measles in Toronto.
Comments closedA woman in her 90s has died of COVID-19, raising the pandemic toll to 12 deaths this year.
The regional public health unit reported the latest death Friday in a weekly update of indicators. The health unit counts cases where the pandemic disease is a main or contributing cause of death.
Hospitalizations are stable at a relatively low level. There are currently six patients with COVID-19 in three local hospitals on an average day. A typical day during the four-year pandemic is 26 patients hospitalized.
Comments closedCanada is seeing a resurgence of measles, with cases in the first quarter of 2024 already far surpassing the total for all of 2023. There were 12 cases last year, and more than three times that number so far in 2024, with 38 reported as of March 19.
Most of these cases (28) are in Québec, and eight are in Ontario, while Saskatchewan and British Columbia have each reported one case.
As an immunologist with a focus on host-microbe interactions and antiviral immunity, I have been following recent measles outbreaks.
Comments closedRespiratory disease levels have remained mostly steady in the past week, Ottawa Public Health says in its latest update.
Influenza remains a major concern with 13 more patients hospitalized in the seven days ended March 16. There were 14 new hospitalizations for COVID-19, which OPH described as “low and decreasing since last week.”
There were 45 more confirmed COVID-19 cases, about half of them in patients 65 years of age and older.
A second lab-confirmed case of measles has been identified in Toronto.
The city’s public health agency said that an infant who recently returned from travel has contracted the disease. The child is recovering at home.
The first Toronto case was identified on Feb. 16.
Toronto Public Health is warning that anyone who attended the Agincourt Public Library between 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on March 11 may have been exposed. Individuals should monitor for symptoms until April 1 and double check that their vaccinations are up to date.
Comments closedThe Manitoulin Health Centre on Manitoulin Island is closing its testing centre for COVID.
President and CEO Paula Fields says the last day for specimen collection at the Centre is this Friday, March 22nd.
She says since the beginning of the pandemic, the Centre has provided safe and timely access to COVID-19 testing and thanks everyone who played a role in relieving pressure off the emergency departments and in protecting Island communities.
Comments closedClass action lawsuits against six of Ontario’s largest for-profit long-term care (LTC) home providers, claiming gross negligence that led to illnesses and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic, have been allowed to proceed.
In a ruling last week, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice certified class action suits against Sienna, Revera, Schlegel, Responsive, Extendicare and Chartwell.
The separate class actions were filed on behalf of thousands of clients, family members and visitors, who allege the companies were unprepared to provide care during the pandemic and failed to protect the health of residents and visitors.
Comments closedThe Ontario Superior Court authorizes six class actions against private operators of long-term care homes charged with negligence during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The complainants allege that the operators of these homes were not at all prepared for a pandemic and did not take the necessary measures to protect their residents and visitors. More than 200 centres, owned and managed by Chartwell Retirement Residences, Extendicare, Responsive Group, Revera, Schlegel Villages and Sienna Senior Living, are subject to these class actions.
Comments closedOntario’s Ministry of Health says it is launching an investigation into the practices of an Ottawa Appletree clinic after a woman was charged $110 to see a nurse practitioner for a routine cancer screening test.
Eileen Murphy says she registered with the Appletree clinic near Carling and Woodroffe last year because both she and her husband were without a family doctor. Their former doctor switched her practice from family medicine to dermatology in 2022.
Comments closedAn open letter calling for UW to implement more robust COVID-19 measures has picked up traction, receiving an endorsement from the World Health Network as well as a response from the university.
The letter was addressed to UW senior administration by the COVID Action, Response, and Equity (CARE) Coalition, a group made up of students, faculty, staff and alumni. It has garnered about 150 signatures so far, including UW Climate Justice Ecosystem, the UW QTPOC KW, and the School of Public Health Sciences Graduate Students’ Association.
Comments closedSeventeen cases of measles have been confirmed in Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan and British Columbia — more than half of those in the Montreal area, while one Ontario case has been linked to a high school.
Quebec public health director Dr. Luc Boileau confirmed 10 cases on Monday, almost all of them involving children and making Montreal the country’s epicentre. He said only three of the cases were linked to travel outside of the country, indicating community spread in and around the city.
Public Health Ontario confirmed five cases of measles and said all but one involved travel.
Comments closedDr. Angela Cheung heads up a network of scientists and health practitioners studying long covid. She’s also a senior physician-scientist at University Health Network in…
Comments closedRespiratory infections in Ottawa showed little change over the last week.
Ottawa Public Health reported 83 new confirmed cases and three new deaths during the period ending Feb. 27.
Last week, there were 130 new cases and two additional deaths.
This week’s reading brought the total number of Ottawa cases to 98,254 since the pandemic began in 2020, while 1,230 people have died.
The health agency’s weekly respiratory infections dashboard showed 12 new hospitalizations for flu patients in the seven days ending Feb. 24, for a total of 199 this season. The report described flu levels as very high, the same description as last week’s data.
The report showed 21 new hospitalizations for COVID-19, for a total of 1,064, and three more hospitalizations for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The COVID-19 and RSV results were described as “moderate.”
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