B.C. health officials release true hospital numbers after public pressure
Following intense public pressure and scrutiny, British Columbia health officials have finally revealed a more accurate account of how many patients are in hospital due to COVID-19.
More than a week after CTV News asked for the numbers and was first to report on the dual accounting methods, the province now says that as of Tuesday, there were 152 additional patients in hospital due to COVID but who were no longer infectious and therefore had “discontinued isolation.”
On Thursday, it reported 330 infectious and still in hospital, 148 of them in intensive care.
So in fact, British Columbia has more than 480 people in hospital due to COVID-19, both infectious and non-infectious; the province of Manitoba has been reporting its figures this way for some time.
“For most cases, isolation is discontinued after 10 days, provided there is no fever and symptoms are improving,” wrote the government in a press release after failing to respond to CTV’s multiple attempts for clarification and statistics. “These same requirements are in effect in Ontario, Alberta and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. In B.C., for serious cases, the guideline is 20 days.”
Dr. Bonnie Henry had sidestepped CTV News’ question on the matter on Tuesday, refusing to give the total number and pointing out they’d always kept two sets of COVID-19 patient counts.
The ministry turned down several requests to discuss the matter further with Henry.
“The Ministry of Health looks at hospitalizations and critical-care beds to ensure the sustainability of the system,” noted the statement, which doesn’t commit to providing the non-infectious hospitalization number in the future, nor does it explain why the public is left in the dark about how COVID factors into cancelled surgeries, long wait times for emergency care, and the inability to support Alberta’s collapsing health-care system.
The policy has prompted intense criticism and calls for greater transparency from health officials, which has been an issue throughout the pandemic.
Hours after the statement, the province released its daily infection and hospitalization numbers the way it always has, without “time-cleared” or “off-precautions” patients in the summary and noting hospitalized patients as a subset of overall active COVID-19 cases.
CTV News asked whether the ministry would adopt the same reporting structure as Manitoba and Ontario and amend its reporting to include all hospitalizations due to COVID-19, whether infectious or not.
“We are always trying to provide more data and information to the public, including in the BCCDC Surveillance Dashboard and situation report,” wrote a senior ministry spokesperson. “The BCCDC is considering that.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.