Recommendations extended based on local COVID-19 statistics

Due to the region’s continued high COVID-19 and hospitalization rates, Northwestern Health Unit (NWHU) has extended their recommendations issued on February 17, 2022. As such, Dr. Kit Young Hoon, Medical Officer of Health at NWHU asks that local businesses, organizations, and residents follow enhanced measures while case numbers and hospitalizations remain high.

“We are not in the same situation as most of the province. Our region continues to have the highest case rate per 100,000 in Ontario (398.1 per 100,000), and we are seeing an increase in hospitalizations for COVID-19 in our area,” says Dr. Young Hoon.

Dr. Young Hoon strongly recommends the following:

• Keep social gatherings limited to a maximum of 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors;
• All indoor public settings limited to the number of people who are able to maintain a physical distance of at least two metres from every other person to a maximum capacity of 50%;
• Be vigilant in continuing to practice all prevention measures, including physical distancing, daily screening, staying home when feeling unwell, and wearing a mask properly when in indoor public settings and when physical distancing is challenging; and
• Getting a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as it significantly reduces the chance of infection from the Omicron variant.

“Until we see a decreasing trend in local case and hospitalization data, these enhanced prevention measures can help protect our most vulnerable residents and our health care system. We will continue to monitor data and once again revisit the recommendations in a few week’s time,” says Dr. Young Hoon.

For information on our region’s COVID-19 data, visit www.nwhu.on.ca/covid19.

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Media Contact
Dr. Kit Young Hoon
Medical Officer of Health
Northwestern Health Unit
jbegg@nwhu.on.ca

Additional Information

The NWHU region’s 7-day positive case rate is 398.1 per 100,000 while Ontario as a whole sits at 82.5 per 100,000.

COVID-19 confirmed cases per 100,000 per week, NWHU and Ontario

NWHU’s 7-day average percent positivty rate is significantly higher than the province, which is 26% vs the province’s declining rate, currently sitting at 10%.

7-day average percent positivity, NWHU and Ontario

The rate of hospitalization in the NWHU region over the past 2 weeks is more than three times as high as the provincial rate; 16.0 vs 4.6 per 100,000 population.

Bi-weekly COVID-19 hospitalization rates per 100,000, NWHU and Ontario