The spread of COVID-19 continues its downward trend, but the number of deaths continues to be high. Quebec reports Friday 54 people hospitalized, but 18 additional deaths.
Posted at 11:16 a.m.
The 18 new deaths reported on Friday bring the daily average calculated over seven days to 17. The trend is up 29% over one week. Part of this increase is attributable to delays in the dissemination of deaths. Eight of the 18 new deaths occurred more than a week ago.
Quebec also reports a drop of 54 hospitalizations on Friday. The 1,918 people currently hospitalized represent a decrease of 4% over one week. In intensive care, the 41 patients represent a drop of 13% over one week.
The number of people in hospital is expected to decline over the next few days, with discharges outpacing admissions. On average, there are 11 fewer patients every day.
The number of healthcare workers absent due to the pandemic fell to 3,901.
The 749 new cases reported on Friday bring the daily average to 824. The trend is thus down 18% over one week. These numbers likely reflect only a portion of total infections, due to limited access to PCR testing. Moreover, the proportion of PCR screening tests proving positive for COVID-19 remains high, at 7.7%. In addition to the cases detected by PCR tests, 350 people have also reported in recent days having obtained a positive result from a rapid test.
