Hospitalizations in Nova Scotia stabilize; 66 in a COVID-19 designated unit Friday

Published: February 18, 2022 at 3:48PM EST

Group of disease experts calls for masking again As COVID-19 cases rise in N.S., a group of infectious disease experts is calling for the return of mandatory masking. Jesse Thomas reports.

Health officials in Nova Scotia are reporting four new hospital admissions related to COVID-19 on Friday, along with seven discharges.

Currently, there were 66 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care in a COVID-19 designated unit.

Of the 66 in hospital:

11 are in intensive care
the age range is from zero to 93-years-old
the median age is 63
the average length of stay in hospital is 6.3 days
62 were admitted during the Omicron wave

The vaccination status of the 66 in hospital is as follows:

21 (31.8 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine
27 (41.0 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses)
1 (1.5 per cent) is partially vaccinated
17 (25.8 per cent) are unvaccinated

There are also two other groups of people in hospital who have COVID-19:

128 people who were identified as positive upon arrival at hospital but were admitted for another medical reason, or were admitted for COVID-19 but no longer require specialized care
168 people who contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital

Nova Scotia is not reporting any additional deaths related to COVID-19 on Friday.

VACCINE UPDATE

As of Thursday, 2,196,425 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.

Of those, 91.7 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose, and 86 per cent have received their second dose.

As well, 61.3 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose, and one per cent have booked a booster dose appointment.

Public health says as of Friday, less than 10 per cent of Nova Scotians are unvaccinated.

CASES AND TESTING

On Thursday, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) labs completed 2,314 tests. An additional 320 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are being reported.

Of those cases:

110 are in the Central Zone
64 are in the Eastern Zone
62 are in the Northern Zone
84 are in the Western Zone

As of Thursday, Nova Scotia estimates there to be 2,439 active cases of COVID-19.

OUTBREAK UPDATE

A new COVID-19 outbreak is being reported in a ward at Sutherland Harris Memorial Hospital in Pictou, N.S., where fewer than five patients have tested positive.