B.C. COVID-19 data suggests increasing transmission
Indicators of the spread of COVID-19 in B.C. continued their upward trend this week, with the number of people hospitalized with the disease hitting its highest level since Jan. 12.
There were 294 people in hospital with the coronavirus in B.C. as of Thursday, up from 250 last week, an increase of nearly 18 per cent.
The number of people in B.C. hospitals with COVID-19 in 2023 is shown. (CTV)
The growth in the hospital population matches recent trends in other indicators, including the official case count and wastewater surveillance data.
The number of people currently in hospital with COVID-19 – sometimes called the hospital census – includes both those with serious cases of the disease requiring medical care and those who are hospitalized for other reasons and test positive incidentally.
Health officials have said between 40 and 50 per cent of those in hospital at any given time are there because of COVID-19, rather than for some other reason, meaning the majority of hospitalizations are incidental.
The 294 people in B.C. hospitals this week represent the third-highest total the province has seen on a Thursday so far this year.
Relative to 2022, however, when the hospital census rose as high as 985 and rarely dropped below 300, hospitalizations are still fairly low in B.C.
The number of people in B.C. hospitals with COVID-19 on Thursdays since the province switched to a "hospital census" model in January 2022 is shown. (CTV)
OTHER DATA
Just how high the current wave of infections will rise is difficult to predict, but the available indicators do not yet show any signs of slowing down.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control reported Thursday that 456 new, lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 had been detected during the epidemiological week of March 19 to 25.
That's an increase from the 405 new cases reported last week for the period of March 11 to 18.
Similarly, the BCCDC reported 135 new hospital admissions during the week of March 19 to 25, up from 105 initially reported for the week before.
Both of these metrics – the official case count and new hospitalizations – come with notable caveats, but each one continues to move in a direction that suggests rising transmission of COVID-19.
The official case count is limited because it only includes infections confirmed through lab-based testing, which is not available to the vast majority of B.C. residents. The official count also excludes reinfections.
New hospital admission figures are limited because they are incomplete when the BCCDC first reports them. Last week's total of 105 new hospitalizations for the period of March 11 to 18 has but updated in this week's report to 143. This week's total of 135 for the period of March 19 to 25 will similarly see an increase when next week's data is released.
WASTEWATER
To supplement its other data, the BCCDC also monitors concentrations of the coronavirus in wastewater across the Lower Mainland and in several communities in the Interior and on Vancouver Island.
Throughout March, wastewater surveillance has shown rising levels of SARS-CoV-2 at every monitored treatment plant.
Last week, the BCCDC announced for the first time that it had begun using a more sensitive test on Feb. 28.
This week, the agency updated its wastewater surveillance data to remove trendlines, citing uncertainty caused by the change in testing methods as the reason. It says the removal of trendlines is temporary.
"(The new test) is more efficient and more sensitive, meaning it can yield a higher test result even if viral levels have not changed," a statement on the BCCDC wastewater surveillance page reads.
"Therefore, observed increases in viral concentrations in wastewater since the beginning of March are likely due, at least in part, to this new test. Trend analysis and interpretation are influenced as a result."
The agency says it is "retesting archived samples" to evaluate the impact the change in testing method has had on the data.
"BCCDC acknowledges that the public and health-care partners use wastewater data to understand how SARS-CoV-2 is spreading in B.C. and to assess their risk of infection," the statement continues. "We anticipate next week’s wastewater update will describe how the change in test affected trends and recent results."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.