Infectious Diseases

Algoma Public Health

Current Status (COVID-19)

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NOTE: 

 

Effective January 17th, 2023, this page will be updated Tuesdays by 3:30 PM, except on statutory holidays.

 

Effective July 5th, 2022, there are changes to the COVID-19 testing data. This page now includes graphs showing 7-day average percent positivity and 7-day average daily tests. the cumulative test counts are no longer included. This is due to a change in data source as well as an effort to provide the most meaningful information.

 

Effective June 7th, 2022 this page will be updated Tuesdays & Thursdays by 3:30 PM, except on statutory holidays.

 

Effective December 31st, 2021, the province has prioritized eligibility for COVID-19 PCR testing so that it is limited to the highest risk populations.  Some people with mild or asymptomatic infection may not be eligible for testing.  Therefore, the numbers of confirmed cases are an underestimate of the actual number of people with COVID-19 in the Algoma region.

 

 

On This Page:

 

  1.  Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in Algoma
  2.  Confirmed COVID-19 Deaths in Algoma
  3.  Confirmed Cases by Area of Residence
  4.  Weekly Case Count
  5.  Weekly Incidence
  6.  COVID-19 Related Hospitalization in Algoma
  7.  Wastewater Surveillance
  8.  Variants of Concern (VOC) Update
  9.  Immunization Status of Cases
  10.  Outbreak Activity
  11.  COVID-19 Testing Volumes and Percent Positivity in Algoma
  12.  COVID-19 Activity in Northern Ontario
  13.  COVID-19 Activity in Northern Michigan

 

Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in Algoma

 

Updated by 3:30 PM EST (Tuesday)

 

 

  Current Change in previous 7 days

Confirmed Cases

12,171 100

Confirmed High-Risk Cases in 2022

9,967 100

High-Risk Active Cases

90 7

Resolved Cases

12,081 93
Updated: March 21, 2023, 3:15 PM

 

 

 

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Confirmed COVID-19 Deaths in Algoma

 

Updated by 3:30 PM EST (Tuesday)

 

 

  Current Status Previous status
(7 days prior)
Change from previous report

Deceased

98 98 No change

COVID-19 was underlying cause of death

49 49 No change

COVID-19 contributed to but was not underlying cause of death

47 47 No change

Unknown cause of death

2 2 No change
Updated: March 21, 2023, 3:15 PM

 

 

 

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Confirmed Cases by Type of Exposure

 

Confirmed cases by exposure type are no longer being updated as they cannot be estimated based on current case management guidance.

 

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Cases by Area of Residence

 

Updated by 3:30 PM EST (Tuesday)

 

 

Algoma Region

Current Change in the previous 7 days

Central & East Algoma

1,373 11
Elliot Lake & Area 896 25
North Algoma 368 1
Sault Ste. Marie & Area 9,530 59
  Updated:  March 21, 2023, 3:15 PM

 

 

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Weekly Case Count

 

 Updated by 3:30 pm EST (Tuesday)

 

Graph of COVID-19 case count

Click to Enlarge

 

Weekly Incidence

 

Updated by 3:30 pm EST (Tuesday)

 

Graph of the weekly incidence rate

Click to Enlarge

 

 

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COVID-19 Related Hospitalization in Algoma

 

Updated by 3:30 pm EST (Tuesday)

 

  Current
Hospitalized Patients with confirmed COVID-19 7
  • Patients admitted for COVID-19 related reasons
4
ICU Patients with confirmed COVID-19 2
  • ICU patients admitted for COVID-19 related reasons
2
Updated: March 21, 2023, 3:15 PM

 

 

 

 

HOSPITALIZATIONS CONFIRMED COVID-19 POSITIVE

 

Graph of confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations in Algoma

 

Click to Enlarge

 

HOSPITALIZATIONS & ICU ADMISSIONS FOR COVID-19

 

Graph of COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions

 

Click to Enlarge

 

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COVID-19 Wastewater Surveillance

Algoma Public Health participates in the Ontario Wastewater Surveillance Initiative, which is coordinated and hosted by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP). Wastewater surveillance involves measuring the amount of virus in wastewater by collecting samples from wastewater treatment plants and pumping stations. These findings can provide a pooled estimate of COVID-19 infection trends in the community.

 

For those with an active COVID-19 infection, the virus is shed through their stools whether an individual is symptomatic or asymptomatic. The amount of the virus shed can vary by individuals in addition to the individuals’ stage of illness, with progression from pre-symptomatic stage through to recovery. Additionally, with current limitations in PCR testing eligibility, wastewater data will include COVID-19 infections that are not lab-confirmed cases. Researchers can use the trends in the viral loads in wastewater along with other indicators (ie. hospitalizations, ICU counts, and mortality) to make informed decisions about potential interventions.

Algoma Wastewater Surveillance Results - Sault Ste. Marie East End Wastewater Treating Plant

 

Graph of of COVID-19 viral load in wastewater

 

Data from November 1, 2021 to March 13, 2023

 

Click to enlarge

PUC Services Inc. collects the wastewater samples from the Sault Ste. Marie East End Wastewater Treatment Plant, approximately three times a week. The Sault Ste. Marie East End Wastewater Treatment Plant serves about 52 000 people. The samples are analyzed at the Health Sciences North Research Institute in Sudbury. The results cannot be extrapolated to areas outside of the area served by the wastewater treatment plant.

 

The Health Sciences North Research Institute (HSNRI) tests for SARS-CoV-2 genome regions called N1 and N2, in concentrated untreated wastewater extracts. The proportion of the wastewater from humans and the proportion that is rain water, snowmelt etc., can fluctuate. Researchers use viral copy data to be normalized using a seasonally stable fecal biomarker; called Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV). Data is extracted from Ontario’s Wastewater Surveillance Data and Visualization Hub. The data in the graph is the biomarker-normalized mean of N1N2. A 7-day moving average is used to smoothen out the data.

 

This information should be interpreted cautiously, particularly when interpreting daily and short-term variation in viral signal results. Trends in case counts and wastewater can inform public health recommendations, however due to the limited eligibility of PCR testing, this data is not fully reflective of true case counts. At this time, due to a limited sample size, the wastewater data does not correlate with hospitalizations and mortality in Algoma.

 

 

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Variants of Concern (VOC) Update

 

Currently, all cases of COVID-19 in Algoma are the Omicron variant. For information on sub-variants circulating in Algoma and for information on VOC surveillance in Ontario, visit Public Health Ontario's VOC Surveillance page.

 

For more information from the Government of Canada, visit their COVID-19 daily epidemiological update.

 

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Immunization Status of Cases

 

Hospitalizations and case counts by vaccination status in Ontario can be found on the Ontario COVID-19 Vaccinations Data. This page is typically updated daily. 

 

In addition, you can learn more about vaccine effectiveness and interpreting these case counts with our Beyond the Case Number infographic.  For further resources you are encouraged to also visit the Ontario Science Table Dashboard.

  

VACCINE EFFECTIVEESS:

Beyond the Case Number


Infographic (JPG)

 

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Outbreak Activity

 

 

Complete list of outbreak activity in Algoma. 

 

 

 

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COVID-19 Testing Volumes and Percent Positivity in Algoma

 

Updated by 3:30 pm EST (Tuesday)

 

Daily Tests

 

Graph of daily COVID-19 tests

 

Click to Enlarge

 

Percent Positivity

 

Graph of the 7 day average of COVID-19 percent positivity in Algoma

 

Click to Enlarge

 

 

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COVID-19 Activity in Northern Ontario 

 

 

Region

Rate of Cases

per Week*
(cases per 100,000 population)

Cumulative Deaths

 
Algoma Public Health 72.5 98 --
North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit 29.3 81 Learn More
Northwestern Health Unit 126.6 55 Learn More
Porcupine Health Unit 10.8 88 Learn More
Public Health Sudbury and Districts 38.7 204 Learn More
Thunder Bay District Health Unit 52.7 139 Learn More
Timiskaming Health Unit 24.5 34 Learn More
Updated: March 21, 2023

*only includes confirmed cases

 

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COVID-19 Activity in Northern Michigan

 

For information on COVID-19 in Chippewa County visit the Chippewa County Health Department website.

For information on COVID-19 in all Michigan counties visit the Michigan State Coronavirus Data website.

 

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Sources:

  • Ontario Case and Contact Management tool (CCM), Ontario Ministry of Health, 2022
  • CPAD Visual Analytics Hub, COVID-19 Regional Hospitals Dashboard, Ontario Ministry of Health, 2022.
  • CPAD Visual Analytics Hub, COVID-19 Confirmed Cases Dashboard, Ontario Ministry of Health, 2022