1,619 people likely caught COVID-19 in B.C. hospitals and 274 of them have died
For the first time, B.C.’s Ministry of Health has provided information about people who likely caught COVID-19 after going to acute care settings for medical treatment or work, with 1,619 getting the virus and 274 of them dying.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control has compiled a report, which is intentionally vague in parts, outlining the time frame and location of the outbreaks. To protect privacy, when the number of affected people is five or fewer, they simply mark an “x," so only 1,533 cases and 189 deaths can be pinpointed in the document; the more accurate grand total was provided by a Ministry of Health spokesperson.
The information was aggregated and released weeks after CTV News asked for detailed accounting on how many people were infected while getting medical treatment. The medical term for hospital-acquired infections is “nosocomial transmission,” and does not appear in any documents available from health authorities or the ministry.
All the deaths from COVID-19 acquired in hospital were patients, and no staff members died as a result. Roughly two-thirds of the infections were in patients, the rest in “staff/other.”
SOME HOSPITALS SAW REPEAT OUTBREAKS, OTHERS JUST ONE
Nine acute care outbreaks are still underway, including the fifth and sixth for Abbotsford Regional Hospital, where at least 53 people are believed to have contracted the virus. At least four of them have died.
At Burnaby Hospital, at least 188 people who went to the hospital for medical care or worked there got COVID-19 and four died during 14 separate outbreaks, one of which is still underway. At least 147 got sick and 18 died at Surrey Memorial across 15 outbreaks. Lions Gate Hospital has seen a total of 126 infected, 28 of whom have died, while the University Hospital of Northern B.C. has had at least 81 cases and 11 deaths.
“Outbreaks are declared at the discretion of the regional Medical Health Officer,” reads the BCCDC report.
For weeks, the Fraser Health and Vancouver Coastal Health authorities have rebuffed efforts to provide the outbreak data or speak with the deputy medical health officers responsible for supervising outbreaks in acute care settings. CTV News made several attempts to discuss the issue with health officials after a Freedom of Information request for documents outlining how hospital outbreaks unfolded and what was done to prevent more were met with mostly blank pages from the former, and zero from the latter.
B.C. HEALTH OFFICIALS CONTINUE TO RESTRICT PANDEMIC INFORMATION
B.C. began releasing information about long-term care and assisted living outbreaks after intense public pressure for transparency on those cases last year, but has resisted proactive disclosure of pandemic-related information on other fronts.
In September, the Ministry of Health came under intense criticism after refusing to reveal the total number of patients in B.C. hospitals due to COVID-19; the province regularly publishes statistics for those considered to still be contagious and therefore a risk to others.
Despite promising to provide weekly totals of both infectious and non-infectious COVID-19 patients, which would better reflect the impact the pandemic is having on the health-care system, health officials have not done so. B.C.'s provincial health officer later said “a semblance” of those statistics would be available.
In the spring, the BCCDC followed through on a promise to provide regular neighbourhood-level data on coronavirus infections and vaccination rates after someone leaked internal documents with the information to Postmedia.
CTV News asked to speak with the provincial health officer or head of the BCCDC to discuss nosocomial transmission, but was told neither was available.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.