As doctors recommend new COVID-19 vaccine doses to combat the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant, a mutation of COVID-19 that has continued to spread despite misconceptions that the virus is in the past, officials say Canada has sufficient supply.
Comments closedTag: Public Health Agency of Canada
Topic: hospitalizationsView all posts for the topic: hospitalizations
COVID-19 hospitalizations reach numbers not seen since last winter
COVID-19 hospitalizations are on the rise across Canada as a wave of autumn infections sweeps the population, according to recent data released by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).
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Wastewater monitoring shows COVID-19 uptick in Haines Junction, Yukon
Residents of Haines Junction, Yukon, have had an early warning system to track COVID-19 and other pathogens for almost a year — and it’s showing an uptick in COVID-19 this fall.
Comments closedTopic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines
Will updated COVID vaccines work against latest variant? Canadian scientists monitor global research
Health Canada is currently reviewing applications for Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s new mRNA vaccines, developed against the dominant XBB.1.5 variant ahead of a vaccination campaign set for the fall.
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.
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Ontario, Alberta change policy limiting N95 masks as health-care workers demand greater access
At least two provinces have bowed to union pressure to let some health professionals use specialized respirator face masks when treating COVID-19 patients, sparking concern among infection-control experts this will undermine health workers’ trust in their advice.
Alberta and Ontario have reached agreements with unions to allow some health-care workers to use N95 respirator masks if they feel it is necessary. Nova Scotia’s largest nursing union is now calling on provincial officials to do the same.
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