There have been five COVID-19 deaths in the London region since Monday.
The Middlesex London Health Unit confirmed on Thursday three men, one in his 70s, another in his 80s, and a third in his 90s, and two women, one in her 70s and the other in her 90s, have succumbed to the virus. All except the woman in her 70s were linked to a long-term care home. Their deaths increase the local death toll to 431.
The health unit also recorded 194 new cases in the area since Monday. The health unit now only updates its COVID-19 dashboard twice a week and daily case tallies are believed to be an underestimate of community spread since the provincial government limited eligibility for PCR testing at the end of December. The total number of confirmed cases locally since March 2020 is now 41,938, according to the health unit.
The number of resolved cases is up to 40,823. Currently, there are 684 known active cases in the region, down from 707 a week ago.
The London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) confirmed it currently has 55 inpatients with COVID-19 in its care, up 16 from Monday. At this time last week, there were 43 people with COVID admitted to the LHSC. Of those currently hospitalized, there are 23 being treated for COVID-19 and 32 being treated for other ailments but have also tested positive.
There are currently five or fewer COVID infected patients listed in the intensive care unit, unchanged from Monday. Children’s Hospital has five or fewer inpatients with the virus, which is up from zero on Monday. None of those admitted to Children's are listed in paediatric critical care.
The number of hospital employees who have contracted COVID-19 went up on Thursday. The LHSC said it has 135 infected staffers, an increase of 16 since Monday.
There are two ongoing level two COVID-19 outbreaks at University Hospital and none at Victoria Hospital. The outbreaks at UH are located on the U5 Cardiology and the 6IP Cardiac Surgery units.
Southwestern Public Health, the health unit for Elgin and Oxford counties, reported 149 more COVID-19 cases this week, increasing the local case count since the pandemic began to 15,206. Two additional COVID-19 deaths were recorded in the region, increasing the local death toll at 176. Resolved cases rose to 14,831 and there are now 199 known active cases in the two counties.
