The pandemic is not yet giving any sign of respite in Quebec.
According to data released Thursday by the Ministry of Health, the province has 14,188 new cases of COVID-19, a new high, and nine additional deaths. Hospitalizations continue to skyrocket.
The situation is so worrying that Prime Minister François Legault will give a press briefing at 5 p.m. on Thursday. He will be accompanied by the Minister of Health and Social Services, Christian Dubé, and the National Director of Public Health, Dr Horacio Arruda.
In all, there are 86,866 active cases in Quebec, reports the Ministry of Health.
Authorities have identified 596,607 cases since the start of the pandemic. The average of new cases over the past seven days is 10,787.
Nine new deaths were added to the death toll. We now deplore 11,711 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its appearance in Quebec.
The situation continues to worsen in hospitals where the number of patients has risen from 804 to 939. Authorities say more than half of the 1,600 or so beds available are occupied. There are 138 people in intensive care, 16 more than the day before.
A total of 45,493 analyzes were performed on December 28. The positivity rate remained at 28%. However, this data is incomplete because it does not take into account those who have done rapid tests at home.
No less than 88,389 doses of vaccine have been administered over the past 24 hours, including 82,728 booster doses.
The percentage of people aged 5 years and over who received a first dose is still around 89%. It is also reported that approximately 82% of the Quebec population received a second dose and that approximately 15% received a booster dose.
Not enough beds
With the increase in cases linked to the Omicron variant, the National Institute of Excellence in Health and Social Services (INESSS) fears that the hospital capacity in Quebec will be exceeded as early as January, potentially requiring a move to a fourth level of load shedding.
In its update on Thursday, INESSS explains that “within 3 weeks, the occupation of regular beds for COVID patients could reach around 1,600 beds and therefore exceed level 3”. This is the result of one of his two prediction models. The second model is even more pessimistic, providing for “around 2,100 regular beds”.
In intensive care, the number of patients could approach the limit with 300 beds used, or cross it with 375 beds, the latter number “exceeding the thresholds observed in previous waves”.
The Institute specifies, however, that these hospitalizations could be reduced “by the intensification of vaccination efforts and by the impact of health measures recently implemented or to come”.
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