'Significant transmission' of COVID-19 in southern Manitoba worrisome: top doctor
CBC
Manitoba's top doctor is concerned about the rate of transmission of COVID-19 in the Southern Health Region — which is more than double the provincial average — and its implications for the rest of the fourth wave.
The latest data from Health Canada shows the health region has 68 cases per 100,000 as of Sunday, compared to just 13 per 100,000 people in the Winnipeg health region — a fivefold difference.
Chief Provincial Public Health Officer Dr. Brent Roussin says there are a number of concerning trends in the health region, including lower testing rates, low vaccine uptake and, as a result, higher test numbers and hospitalization rates.
The region makes up roughly half of new COVID-19 cases, but is only home to just over 15 per cent of the population, he says.
Particularly worrisome in the health region is that more than half of the people who are admitted to intensive care units receive their first COVID-19 test in hospital, suggesting they've unknowingly spread the virus to others, Roussin said in an online news conference on Monday.
"There's people who are delaying being tested, are out in community while very ill and not being diagnosed until being admitted when they're severely ill. A lot of concerns about what's happening throughout Manitoba, but certainly we see significant transmission in the Southern Health Region right now," he said.
"There's a number of things that tell me that transmission has been increasing and will continue to increase."
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