**** HEALTH/WELLNESS Media Release
10 New Hospital Admissions, Six Discharges, One Death
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Today, January 28, Nova Scotia is reporting 10 new hospital admissions and six discharges.
Nova Scotia is also reporting one death related to COVID-19: a man in his 60s in Western Zone has died.
“It’s never easy to learn that another Nova Scotian lost their life because of this virus. I offer my sincere condolences to the family and friends grieving,” said Premier Tim Houston. “This has been a difficult week for our province. As we head into the weekend, please let this be a sad reminder to slow down your activities, minimize your contacts and follow the public health measures in place.”
There are 88 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care in a COVID-19 designated unit. That includes 15 people in ICU. The age range of those in hospital is 35-100 years old. The average age is 67, and the average length of stay of people admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 is 7.6 days.
“My thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of the man who has passed away,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s Chief Medical Officer of Health. “Now more than ever, we need to come together as a province and do everything we can to prevent this from happening to another Nova Scotian. Together we can slow the spread of this virus. ”
Of the 88 people in hospital, 85 were admitted during the Omicron wave.
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.
It is important to note that less than 10 per cent of Nova Scotians are unvaccinated.
There are also two other groups of people in hospital related to COVID-19:
— 104 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
— 130 people who contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital.
Vaccine Coverage:
As of January 27, 2,094,109 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. Of those, 91.1 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose, and 83.5 per cent have received their second dose.
As well, 52.1 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose, and 6.1 per cent have booked a booster dose appointment.
Cases and Testing:
On January 27, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) labs completed 3,670 tests. An additional 620 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are being reported.
There are 319 cases in Central Zone, 97 cases in Eastern Zone, 98 cases in Northern Zone and 106 cases in Western Zone.
As of today, there are an estimated 4,316 active cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia.
Hospital and Long-Term Care Outbreaks:
NSHA is reporting one new outbreak in a ward at the Halifax Infirmary site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre. Fewer than five patients have tested positive.
NSHA is also reporting additional cases related to the outbreaks in three hospitals:
— two additional patients in a ward at the Victoria General site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre; fewer than 10 patients have tested positive
— one additional patient in a separate ward at the Halifax Infirmary site of the QEII Health Sciences Centre; fewer than five patients have tested positive
— one additional patient in a ward at the Dartmouth General Hospital; fewer than 10 patients have tested positive.
The Province is reporting one outbreak in a long-term care facility: 21 residents and seven staff have tested positive at Victoria Manor in Amherst. Public health is working with the facility to prevent further spread. Increased public health measures and restrictions are in place.
Quick Facts:
— a state of emergency was declared under the Emergency Management Act on March 22, 2020, and has been extended to February 6, 2022
Additional Resources:
Nova Scotians can find accurate, up-to-date information, handwashing posters and fact sheets at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus
Information on provincewide restrictions that took effect December 22 and other public health measures to help slow the spread of COVID-19 is available at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/restrictions-and-guidance/
More information on COVID-19 case data, testing and vaccines is available at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/data/
More information about public health text notifications of positive COVID-19 cases and close contacts is available here: https://www.nshealth.ca/news/public-health-notifying-positive-covid-19-cases-text-advising-notify-close-contacts
Government of Canada: https://canada.ca/coronavirus or 1-833-784-4397 (toll-free)
