The latest wave of COVID-19 in Manitoba seems to be catching up.
The increase in COVID-19 patients admitted to a Manitoba hospital last week was lower than the previous week, suggesting that this latest wave of the pandemic may have peaked.
The latest Manitoba Public Health Epidemiological Report says 188 COVID patients were admitted to hospital during the week of April 17-23. That’s four more than the week ending April 16, when there were 184.
The report also says that 12 patients with COVID were admitted to the intensive care unit last week, down from 10 intensive care units from the week ending April 16, when there were 22.
This is a significant improvement from the previous trend. In the week ending April 16, there were 26 more hospitalizations and three more intensive care units than in the week ending April 9 (when there were 158 and 19).
The chief provincial public health official says the slowdown in hospital admissions, combined with static sewage indicators for the presence of coronavirus in Winnipeg, suggests the current wave of the pandemic could be offset.
“If we look at our wastewater, if we look at some of these confessions, we see what an early plateau might be,” he said.
“It is difficult to predict what will happen here, but entering better weather, we hope, soon, in the spring, seeing some of these plateau indicators brings some optimism.
The number of people dying from COVID-19 has not yet decreased. Thirteen Manitoba residents died of COVID-19 in the week ending April 16, up from 12 in the previous week.
A total of 1,792 Manitoba people have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
Although the number of patients appears to be leveling off, Manitoba hospitals still care for a significant number of COVID-19 patients while dealing with staff absences, in part due to COVID infection.
Inside data from CBC News says 579 patients with COVID-19 were in hospitals in Manitoba on Wednesday, an increase of 41 patients since April 19.
Of these patients, 28 were in intensive care, two more than in the previous week.
On Friday, Winnipeg Regional Health Chief Executive Officer Mike Nader told staff by email that a large number of COVID patients in the city’s hospitals are contributing to long waits in emergency departments.
Nader said Monday that the flow of patients to hospitals has been disrupted by the need to isolate infectious patients, equip staff with protective equipment and keep patients in emergency rooms longer while waiting for COVID test results.
Add Comment