Number in hospital with COVID-19 in B.C. largely unchanged
Update, Aug. 20: The B.C. Centre for Disease Control says its dashboard was "mistakenly updated" with incomplete data on Thursday, and the true number of people in hospital should have been 390, not 366. More information on this error can be found here. The original story follows.
The number of patients with COVID-19 in B.C. hospitals declined slightly this week, as an independent modelling group says the province's latest wave of infections has passed its peak.
There were 366 test-positive patients in hospital as of Thursday, down from 385 at this time last week. The number of patients in critical care was essentially unchanged, down to 22 from 23.
The number of people in B.C. hospitals with COVID-19 on Thursdays since January 2022 is shown. (CTV)
The hospital population reported each week by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control includes both those who have severe cases of COVID-19 requiring hospitalization and those who were admitted to hospital for other reasons and tested positive incidentally.
Since the province switched to this "hospital census" model for counting hospitalizations, B.C. has seen as many as 985 people in hospital with COVID-19 on a Thursday and as few as 255.
MODELLING DATA
The decline in the hospital census comes as the latest report from the independent BC COVID-19 Modelling Group suggests the most recent wave of infections has peaked.
"Reported case numbers, the number of people in hospital and the number in ICU are stable or declining slightly in B.C.," the report reads.
It also estimates that underreporting of COVID-19 infections in the province – which has been known to be substantial since the start of 2022 – is off by a factor of about 100.
If that estimate is correct, the 877 new infections reported Thursday by the BCCDC – which were recorded via lab-based testing during the week of Aug. 7 to 13 – equate to an actual total of roughly 87,700 new cases province-wide.
That total would imply that more than 12,500 British Columbians were catching COVID each day during the week in question.
Sarah Otto is a member of the modelling group and a professor of biomathematics at the University of British Columbia. On Wednesday, she told CTV News that she views estimates of the true spread of the coronavirus in the province as "a public service" that can help people gauge what precautions to take at a given time.
"I think it's very important that we be able to make wise decisions about the risks that we take – that we know when to mask, that we know when to limit our indoor social activities," she said. "To make informed decisions, we have to have the information."
WASTEWATER
Like cases, hospitalizations and critical care admissions, concentrations of COVID-19 in Metro Vancouver wastewater have been stable or declining in recent weeks.
In its latest "situation report," the BCCDC notes that wastewater sampling continues to show "week-to-week variability," but concentrations of the coronavirus have been decreasing since their most recent peak in late June or early July.
Though all indicators point to B.C. being on the downslope of the most recent COVID-19 wave, Otto cautioned that the amount of virus circulating in the community remains high, and said people should be wearing masks and avoiding indoor gatherings if they want to avoid getting sick right now.
VACCINATION DATA
Nearly everyone in B.C. has COVID-19 antibodies, whether from vaccination or past infection, according to data from the national COVID-19 Immunity Task Force.
Because immunity wanes over time, however, the province has been planning a "fall booster" vaccination campaign, urging people to get another dose of vaccine beginning in September.
Adults who want to get a second booster dose before September can call to book an appointment, even though it's discouraged.
According to the BCCDC's COVID-19 dashboard, 24,243 doses of vaccine were administered during the week that ended Aug. 13.
Just over half of those doses (12,519) were fourth shots, also known as second boosters.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours - a new global chess record
A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City's Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.