Montreal 'on the downward slope' of Omicron wave, public health says
CBC
As Montreal approaches the second anniversary of its first confirmed COVID-19 case, public health officials say the city is finally past the worst of the fifth wave of the pandemic.
"The peak of the Omicron wave is behind us," said Dr. Mylène Drouin, director of Montreal Public Health, who added that she hoped this would be her last news conference on COVID-19.
Drouin said officials estimate that at least 30 per cent of the city's population — approximately 1.2 million people — got COVID-19 during the Omicron wave.
But as the number of outbreaks, hospitalizations and deaths continues to drop, Drouin says the city now finds itself in a transition phase.
Because of this, officials are closing the vaccination centre at the convention centre downtown, the Palais des Congrès, as of Thursday, and winding down the city's COVID-19 command centre.
Vaccinations will continue at smaller sites, as officials focus on reaching those who have not yet received a dose, and on seniors or people with chronic illnesses who have not yet received a second dose or a booster shot.
Drouin thanked Montrealers for being "adaptable" and acknowledged the "pandemic fatigue" that many are feeling after the past two years.
Still, she urged people to continue to be vigilant.
"It doesn't mean that we're in an endemic phase … we still have the possibilities of seeing other variants," she said.
Drouin said people should continue to take a rapid test when they have symptoms, isolate for five days if they test positive, and wear a mask and avoid contacts with vulnerable people for another five days after that.
She also reminded those who are over 70 or immunocompromized that they are eligible for a PCR test, and, if they are positive, for anti-viral medication.
As the city emerges from the fifth wave, it may take more than a year for Montreal's hospital system to reduce the backlog in surgeries, caused by the strain of COVID-19.
Sonia Bélanger, president and general director of the regional health board CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal said hospital operating rooms are back to functioning at 86 per cent capacity.
But she said there are still 45,000 people awaiting surgery, including 15,000 who have been waiting for more than a year.
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