The pressure exerted by the COVID-19 continues to decrease on the health network, at a time when Quebec reports however Tuesday 36 new deaths as well as 1256 additional infections.
Posted at 11:19 a.m.
These 1,256 new cases bring the seven-day moving average to 1,011, a figure that has been following an overall downward trend for several weeks now. To date, 1,165,128 Quebecers have been infected with the disease. However, these data only reflect a portion of total infections due to limited access to PCR screening tests.
The proportion of PCR screening tests proving positive for coronavirus is currently 11.8%. 36 more virus-related deaths were also reported on Tuesday, a high in recent days, for a total of 16,165 deaths from COVID-19.
In the health network, the authorities report a drop of 29 hospitalizations related to the disease, or 280 new entries and 309 exits. To date, 1,964 patients remain hospitalized, 50 of whom are still in intensive care, a drop of five cases in 24 hours in this regard (20 entries, 25 exits). About 679 of 1,964 hospitalized patients are with a primary diagnosis of COVID-19; the others were admitted for other reasons, before being declared positive for the disease.
However, the number of workers absent for reasons related to COVID-19 is on the rise again. Tuesday, they were 4109 to have to isolate themselves, an increase of 652 compared to the day before.
Focus on vaccination
On the vaccination side, 11,652 additional doses have been administered in the last 24 hours, mostly fourth doses. According to the VaccinTracker Quebec site, more than 87.2% of the Quebec population now has one dose, approximately 83.7% has two, 53.1% has three and 17.9% has four.
Quebec launched a new booster dose vaccination campaign against COVID-19 on Monday. This will primarily be aimed at people living in CHSLDs and in private seniors’ residences (RPA). The recommended interval between the basic vaccination and the first booster dose remains three months or more, but the suggested interval between each booster dose is five months or more.
At a time when a new vaccine adapted to Omicron could soon arrive in Canada, experts are calling on Quebec to “clarify its messages” as much as possible. “It will take very agile coordination of public health messages, which we have unfortunately not always seen in the past. People should still go get vaccinated with the current vaccine, which is still very good,” Dr.r André Veillette, researcher at the Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM), in The Press.
Recall that Prime Minister François Legault received a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine last Friday in Montreal, encouraging Quebecers to follow his example, especially young people who are less at risk of being seriously ill. A state of the situation must be made Tuesday on the vaccination campaign, in particular on the low rate of vaccination noted so far in children.
Last Sunday, 9,362 screening tests were carried out, a relatively stable figure compared to the weekly average. In all, 276,642 rapid tests have been self-reported so far on the government platform, of which 231,497 have tested positive. For Monday alone, 241 tests were reported, of which 199 were positive.