COVID-19: 1,256 cases in Alberta, ICU and hospital numbers up slightly ahead of Thanksgiving

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Alberta reported another 1,256 cases of COVID-19 on Friday, and the number of people being nursed in hospitals, including those needing intensive care, rose slightly heading into the holiday weekend.

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Sixteen more people have died from the disease, provincial data shows.

Hospitalizations rose by seven to 1,101, and 73.9 per cent of them were unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, chief medical office of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said in a tweet.

There were 250 COVID-19 patients in ICU, an increase of two. Approximately 90 per cent of these patients were unvaccinated or had a single shot.

Eleven K-12 schools in the Edmonton Zone had outbreaks and another 169 had alerts. A school is considered to have an outbreak with 10 or more cases, and on alert with two to nine cases, when a person was onsite while infectious.

Province-wide, 696 schools had alerts and 48 schools had outbreaks, government data shows.

Active cases sat at 17,839, including 4,204 in the Edmonton area. These numbers have continued to drop since reaching a peak Sept. 26, 10 days after a series of new health restrictions and the vaccine passport program were announced.

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Safe Thanksgiving

Ahead of the holiday weekend, provincial leaders urged Albertans on Thursday to follow gathering rules. Cases and hospitalizations spiked last year shortly after the Thanksgiving weekend, beginning the province’s second wave.

“Act responsibly, to show our gratitude collectively, to the nurses, doctors and other frontline health-care workers who are doing so much to save lives … by doing what you can to limit transmission, or if you’ve not yet been vaccinated, to join the growing number of Albertans who are,” Premier Jason Kenney said.

“Please listen to the health orders, please make sure you keep your Thanksgiving gathering small like we’ve asked for those that are vaccinated — if you’re unvaccinated, celebrate it with your immediate family,” Health Minister Jason Copping said.

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“We need all Albertans to have a safe Thanksgiving, by having gatherings as small as possible,” said chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw .

Currently, unvaccinated people are prohibited from meeting indoors with anyone outside their household.

But, for the majority of Albertans who are vaccinated, two households can socialize indoors with up to 10 vaccinated people, with no restrictions on the number of children under 12 allowed.

Outdoor gatherings are limited to 20 people.

Tests missed fourth-wave cases, but worst has passed

Cases being substantially underreported during Alberta’s fourth wave may explain the unexpectedly high rate of COVID-19 hospital admissions, new modelling from a B.C. research group shows.

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But it appears the worst of the fourth wave may be over.

A report released Thursday by the B.C. COVID-19 Modelling Group shows hospital admissions for the disease surpassed projections — unlike B.C. and Saskatchewan — and Alberta’s changes to testing protocols this summer could be to blame, it argues.

It’s expected there are “missing cases” because hospital rates are higher than anticipated compared to positive test results. Rural testing rates were particularly low.

Ending contact tracing may also be why the majority of people didn’t know where they got infected, it said.

However, recent numbers are back in line with their projections, which researchers say is a sign of hope.

lboothby@postmedia.com

@laurby