**** HEALTH/WELLNESS Media Release
Four New Hospital Admissions, Seven Discharges, State of Emergency Renewed
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NOTE: Nova Scotia is not issuing a COVID-19 news release on Monday, February 21. Abbreviated COVID-19 news releases will be issued on February 19 and 20. The online dashboard will not be updated again until Tuesday, February 22.
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Today, February 18, Nova Scotia is reporting four new hospital admissions and seven discharges.
There are 66 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care in a COVID-19 designated unit. That includes 11 people in ICU. The age range of those in hospital is 0 to 93 years old. The median age is 63, and the median length of stay of people admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 is 6.3 days.
Of the 66 people in hospital, 62 were admitted during the Omicron wave.
The vaccination status of those in hospital is:
— 21 (31.8 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine
— 27 (41.0 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses)
— 1 (1.5 per cent) is partially vaccinated
— 17 (25.8 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:
— 128 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
— 168 people who contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital.
Vaccine Coverage:
As of February 17, 2,196,425 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. Of those, 91.7 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose, and 86 per cent have received their second dose.
As well, 61.3 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose, and one per cent have booked a booster dose appointment.
Cases and Testing:
On February 17, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) labs completed 2,314 tests. An additional 320 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are being reported.
There are 110 cases in Central Zone, 64 cases in Eastern Zone, 62 cases in Northern Zone and 84 cases in Western Zone.
As of today, there are an estimated 2,439 active cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia.
Hospital Outbreaks:
NSHA is reporting a new outbreak in a ward at Sutherland Harris Memorial Hospital in Pictou. Fewer than five patients have tested positive.
The Province is renewing the state of emergency to protect the health and safety of Nova Scotians and ensure safety measures and other important actions can continue. The order will take effect at noon, Sunday, February 20, and extend to noon, Sunday, March 6, unless the government terminates or extends it.
Quick Facts:
— a state of emergency was declared under the Emergency Management Act on March 22, 2020, and has been extended to March 6, 2022
Additional Resources:
More information on COVID-19 case data, testing and vaccines is available at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/data/
Nova Scotians can find accurate, up-to-date information on the Province’s response to COVID-19 at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus
Information on current provincewide restrictions and other public health measures to help slow the spread of COVID-19 is available at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/restrictions-and-guidance/
Information on Nova Scotia’s three-phase reopening plan, which started Monday, February 14, is available at: https://novascotia.ca/reopening-plan/
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)
