Nova Scotia reports 1 COVID-19 death Friday; 88 in designated hospital units

21 residents, 7 staff test positive in outbreak at Victoria Manor in Amherst

CBC News 

Nova Scotia reported one death related to COVID-19 on Friday, a man in his 60s who lived in the western zone.

A news release from the province said there were 88 people receiving care in designated COVID-19 units in hospital, including 15 in intensive care.

The province said there were 10 admissions and six discharges. The age range of those in hospital is 35 to 100 and the average age is 67. The average length of stay is 7.6 days.

The vaccination status of those in hospital is:

• 18 (20.5 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
• 52 (59.1 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses).
• 1 (1.1 per cent) is partially vaccinated.
• 17 (19.3 per cent) are unvaccinated.

Nova Scotia’s health authority did 3,670 tests Thursday and found 620 new cases of the virus. The central zone has 319 new cases, eastern zone has 97, northern zone has 98 and the western zone has 106.

The province says there are about 4,316 active cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia.

About nine per cent of Nova Scotians are not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Currently, unvaccinated Nova Scotians are about 3.5 to four times more likely to be hospitalized due to COVID-19 than someone with two doses of vaccine. That is based on average hospitalizations since the province started releasing the daily hospitalization numbers by vaccine status on Jan. 4.

About seven per cent of Nova Scotians, or roughly 72,000 people, are eligible to get the vaccine but haven’t yet. Nova Scotia Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Robert Strang said this group is being “disproportionately impacted by Omicron,” representing 30 per cent of COVID-19 deaths since Dec. 8, and 21 per cent of hospitalizations.

Outbreaks in hospital and long-term care 

The province said 21 residents and seven staff have tested positive at Victoria Manor, a long-term care home in Amherst.

Nova Scotia reported one new outbreak in a ward at the Halifax Infirmary site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre, where under five people have tested positive.

The health authority reported a handful of new cases at the Victoria General, a second ward at the Halifax Infirmary, and at the Dartmouth General Hospital. In total, fewer than 25 people are affected.

Atlantic Canada case numbers

• Prince Edward Island reported 17 people in hospital Friday, with two in ICU.
• New Brunswick reported four more deaths and 135 hospitalizations Friday, including 16 in ICU and four person on a ventilator.
• Newfoundland and Labrador reported 20 people in hospital with the virus and 265 new cases Friday.