N.S. announces 3 deaths related to COVID-19 Wednesday, 4 new hospital admissions

Health officials in Nova Scotia are reporting four new hospital admissions due to COVID-19, and nine discharges Wednesday.

The province is also reporting three deaths related to COVID-19 that were not previously reported. The deaths occurred between Feb. 6 and 12, and involve:

• a woman in her 50s in the Eastern Zone
• a woman in her 60s in the Western Zone
• a man in his 70s in the Eastern Zone.

“Data on deaths comes from Panorama, public health’s disease information system. It is entered into the system only after the death is identified to be COVID-related, which can take days or weeks to investigate and report,” reads a news release from the province.

“This is why these three deaths were not reported previously. Data on deaths is reflective of virus activity in the past, at the point of infection, and not the situation today, at the point of reporting.”

There are 66 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care in a COVID-19 designated unit.

Of those in hospital:

• nine are in the intensive care unit
• they range in age from 0 to 93-years-old
• the median stay is 6.2 days
• 63 of 66 were admitted during the Omicron wave

“Today, three more families are grieving an unimaginable loss,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health.

“From the start of this pandemic, COVID-19 has disproportionately affected the most vulnerable people in our communities – and that has not changed. That’s why it’s still so important to take care of one another. And the best way to do that is to get vaccinated, stay home if you’re sick, and follow the public health guidance in place to keep everyone safe.”

The vaccination status of those in hospital is:

• 19 (28.8 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine
• 24 (36.4 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses)
• 1 (1.5 per cent) is partially vaccinated
• 22 (33.3 per cent) are unvaccinated

There are also two other groups of people in hospital who have COVID-19:

• 131 people who were identified as positive upon arrival at hospital but were admitted for another medical reason, or were admitted for COVID-19 but no longer require specialized care
• 164 people who contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital

VACCINE UPDATE

As of Feb. 15, 2,188,378 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. Of those, 91.6 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose, and 85.8 per cent have received their second dose.

As well, 60.3 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose, and 1.8 per cent have booked a booster dose appointment.

CASES AND TESTING

On Feb. 15, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) labs completed 1,734 tests. An additional 223 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are being reported.

Of those cases:

• 62 are in the Central Zone
• 70 are in the Eastern Zone
• 36 are in the Northern Zone
• 55 are in the Western Zone

OUBREAK UPDATE

NSHA is reporting new outbreaks in a ward at Dartmouth General Hospital and Digby General Hospital. The province says fewer than five patients at each facility have tested positive.

NSHA is also reporting additional cases related to the outbreaks in four hospitals:

• two additional patients in a ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital where fewer than 10 patients have tested positive

• one additional patient in a separate ward at Cape Breton Regional Hospital where fewer than 10 patients have tested positive

• one additional patient in a ward at Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre in Amherst where a total of 10 patients have tested positive

• one additional patient in a ward at the Halifax Infirmary site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre where fewer than 10 patients have tested positive