The BC Center for Disease Control says COVID-19 hospitalizations are up slightly across the province, although the number of people requiring intensive care is down somewhat.
The BCCDC on Thursday reported 374 people hospitalized with the virus, an increase of 4%, and 31 patients in intensive care, compared to 34 the previous week.
In the week to December 10, 27 new deaths were reported among people who had tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 30 days.
A total of 4,760 people in British Columbia are believed to have died of coronavirus-related causes since the pandemic began.
During the same week, the number of cases confirmed by a PCR test and reported by the province rose to 659, up 22% from the 539 reported the previous week.
The number of deaths, hospitalizations and reported cases may be revised retroactively, as the BCCDC and the provincial Ministry of Health receive updated data from regional health authorities.
The true number of cases in the province is believed to be much higher than presented by the BCCDC. The BCCDC only reports lab-confirmed tests, and these PCR tests are currently inaccessible to the majority of British Columbians.
The center says underreporting of cases has increased since the emergence of the Omicron variant, and in its most recent report it says around 5,900 people have been tested, with a positivity rate of around 12. %.
The BCCDC is also monitoring viral loads in wastewater from five different water treatment facilities in Metro Vancouver, which represent almost half of British Columbia’s population, and says viral loads of SARSCoV 2 slowly increasing in all wastewater treatment plants in the region.
Difficult flu season for children
British Columbia, like the rest of Canada, continues to struggle with a so-called tripledemic as rising cases of COVID-19, flu and respiratory illnesses have especially strained children’s hospitals , increasing wait times and crowding emergency rooms.
The province released its first weekly report on these respiratory diseases Thursday. It says influenza activity is still high, but no new influenza-related deaths have been reported among children.
So far this year, six children have died of flu-related causes.
Influenza A continues to be the most commonly detected virus in British Columbia, but test positivity rates are declining, the report said.
On Monday, The Canadian Press reported that BC Children’s Hospital was prepared to double patients into single-occupancy rooms if necessary to make more space for children requiring hospital care.
Provincial health authorities are strongly encouraging parents, caregivers and children over six months of age to get a flu shot and receive a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before the holidays to try to avoid serious illness.
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