There has been one more death from Covid-19 in the Northwest Territories as the latest Covid-19 outbreak continues to fester in the Beaufort Delta.
The official weekly tally, which includes Covid-19 at-home tests which do not require a doctor to follow-up, is considerably higher, listing a total of 99 cases in the Beaufort Delta. The Monday community tally states there are 59 active cases in Aklavik, Nine in Fort McPherson, 25 in Inuvik and six in Tuktoyaktuk.
Unofficial numbers of hospital and health care treated cases obtained by the Inuvik Drum indicate there are 30 active cases in Aklavik, with one new cases since Friday. Four new cases have been reported at the Fort McPherson health centre, bringing the community total to 11. Inuvik has one new case, bringing the total to 12 Covid-19 cases. No cases have been reported from the health centres of Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour or Ulukhaktok, and there are no active cases in Tsiigehtchic or Tuktoyaktuk anymore. The unofficial total of cases in the Beaufort Delta is 53.
These numbers are used by government officials to keep a gauge of the rate of spread and have not been certified by the Office of the Chief Public Health Officer.
The internal numbers are based on tests completed at Inuvik Public Health and Community Health Centres. They do not include home Rapid Antigen tests SA国际影视传媒� those are reported to Protect NWT and typically do not involve clinical follow-up.
Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Kami Kandola told Inuvik Drum the internally distributed daily counts are intended for government-use only and have not been validated by her staff SA国际影视传媒� meaning exact numbers of cases may not match official counts 100 per cent.
SA国际影视传媒淓veryday we provide regional updates, so in the Beaufort Delta youSA国际影视传媒檒l know every day what the numbers are,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淭he regional Chief Operation Officers are communicating with governments on a regular basis to let them know what the numbers are, but these numbers need to be validated and that takes time.
SA国际影视传媒淭hat requires validation, it requires removing duplicates, it requires a level of effort that canSA国际影视传媒檛 be sustained on a daily basis, because I need those staff to actually focus on outbreak response.SA国际影视传媒�
She added when the GNWT identifies a public health risk, the location and time of exposure is published immediately.
Health Minister Julie Green said the internal numbers are provided to governments at their request and should be considered unofficial counts.
SA国际影视传媒淭here is no loss of service to the public in not providing the updates more often,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淭he important indicator for Omicron is hospitalization. I would encourage people to also focus on that metric as an indicator of whatSA国际影视传媒檚 going on.SA国际影视传媒�
Green encouraged residents to check the Public Exposure site frequently, as it is updated on a daily basis as cases arise.
Several exposure notices have been posted over the last week.
Inuvik Warming Centre has been listed as a Covid-19 exposure site. Anyone who was at the Shelter on Reliance St. from 6 p.m. to midnight on Jan. 11 to 13 should self monitor for symptoms, regardless of vaccination status.
Anyone who was at StantonSA国际影视传媒檚 on Jan. 10 to 13 from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., or on Jan. 14 from 10 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. is asked to self-monitor for symptoms, regardless of vaccine status. If symptoms develop, they are asked to isolate immediately and seek testing. Anyone who is not fully vaccinated should get tested on the fourth day of their limited contact period whether experiencing symptoms or not.
These are in addition to Public exposure notices for StantonSA国际影视传媒檚 Grocery Store in both Tuktoyaktuk and Aklavik SA国际影视传媒� anyone who was in the Tuktoyaktuk location on Jan. 4 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Jan. 5 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. should self monitor for symptoms. If symptoms develop, they should isolate immediately and arrange testing. All non-fully vaccinated persons should arrange testing on day four regardless of symptoms.
Anyone who was at the Aklavik location on Jan. 8 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. or 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. should self monitor for symptoms. If symptoms develop, they should isolate immediately and arrange testing. All non-fully vaccinated persons should arrange testing on day four regardless of symptoms.
The Office of the Chief Public Health Officer announced today it will no longer publish exposures on Air Canada and Westjet flights into Yellowknife. Anyone flying into Yellowknife will now be expected to follow the SA国际影视传媒淜now what to do for 72SA国际影视传媒� guidelines published on the GNWTSA国际影视传媒檚 website.
