Latest news with #OttawaPublicHealth
Ottawa Citizen
3 hours ago
- Health
- Ottawa Citizen
Spring COVID-19 vaccine campaign ramps up as new variant emerges
Ottawa public health officials are urging seniors and others who are at heightened risk to get a COVID-19 vaccine this spring. Article content The spring vaccination campaign for those at risk of more serious outcomes comes at a time when COVID-19 is likely far from many people's minds. But it might not be for long. Article content Article content A new, more transmissible variant of the virus, known as NB.1.8.1 or Nimbus, has been circulating through Asia and other parts of the world in recent weeks, driving cases up after a lull. A few cases have been identified in the U.S. For now, COVID-19 transmission remains low in Ottawa and there have been no reports of the new variant. Article content Article content But, given the new variant and patterns in past years, it is likely cases of COVID-19 will also begin to rise in Ottawa over the summer. Article content Article content Getting a spring booster could protect those who are highest risk of poor outcomes, said Marie-Claude Turcotte, who is director of health promotion and chief nursing officer at Ottawa Public Health. Many people over the age of 65 or with other factors, such as compromised immune systems, are unaware that they are eligible for a dose of the vaccine. The vaccine protects against the most severe outcomes from COVID-19 but after four months that protection begins to wane. Article content Seniors over the age of 65 make up the largest proportion of people who end up in hospital with COVID-19. Of 118 people hospitalized in Ottawa since the end of 2024, more than 93 per cent were over the age of 60. Even during periods when there are few cases of COVID-19 circulating, some people, many of them seniors, end up being treated in hospital. There were six people in Ottawa hospitals during the last week of May, according to Ottawa Public Health. Article content Article content Those eligible for the spring booster include all adults 65 and older, adult residents of long-term care homes or other congregate living settings and people six months and older who are moderately to severely immunocompromised due to an underlying condition or treatment. They also include individuals 55 and older who identify as First Nations, Inuit or Metis and their non-Indigenous household members who are 55 and older. Article content Article content Vaccines are available through pharmacies. Some physicians also administer COVID-19 vaccines, as do long-term care homes.
Ottawa Citizen
29-05-2025
- Health
- Ottawa Citizen
Support for mandatory childhood vaccination increases, as measles outbreaks continue
As measles cases continue to rise in Ontario and Alberta, there are signs that support for mandatory childhood vaccination is rebounding, although hesitancy among parents is also rising. Article content Article content A new poll of almost 1,700 Canadians suggests support for mandatory childhood immunization has resurged across Canada, with nearly 70 per cent saying they should be mandatory. That is already the case in Ontario, with exemptions for medical and philosophical reasons, but not in all provinces. That number is up from 55 per cent a year ago. Article content Article content The apparently strengthening support for mandatory childhood immunization could reflect the historic measles outbreaks this year — the largest since the highly infectious disease was considered eliminated in Canada in 1998. Canada now risks losing its elimination status. Article content Article content But the Angus Reid poll also suggests vaccine hesitancy and opposition to childhood vaccination is on the rise among parents of children under 18 — from 16 per cent a decade ago to 22 per cent in the latest poll. The poll also found that a higher rate of people who voted Conservative in the April election feel that 'measles isn't as bad as people think it is'. Article content The findings suggest that closing vaccination gaps to ensure herd immunity (about 95 per cent for measles) will be a complex task. There will likely continue to be geographic pockets where vaccination rates are low, in addition to a continuing gap among people who missed doses or for whom access to primary care is difficult. Article content Article content On Thursday, Public Health Ontario reported that the measles outbreak in the province had grown by 93 cases in the past week, bringing the total since last fall to 1,888 cases. There have also been 87 cases in Ontario since the beginning of the year that were not linked to the outbreak. As of May 17, there had been 509 measles cases in Alberta this year, with fewer than 100 in other provinces, totalling more than 2,500 cases across the country since the start of 2025. Article content Article content In the large Ontario outbreak, the majority of cases have been among infants, children and youth who were unvaccinated. Most cases have been centred in southwestern Ontario, but the outbreak has spread across much of the province, including Eastern Ontario. Ottawa Public Health reported two travel-related measles cases earlier, but has not reported any cases directly related to the outbreak.
Ottawa Citizen
15-05-2025
- Health
- Ottawa Citizen
Ontario measles outbreak at more than 1,600 cases
Ontario's ongoing measles outbreak has now topped 1,600 cases as it continues to grow and spread across the province. Article content Article content In the past week alone, 182 new cases were reported by public health agencies in the province, bringing the total number of cases to 1,622 and making the outbreak the largest in at least three decades. Article content Most of the new cases were in parts of southwestern Ontario that have been at the epicentre of the outbreak that began last fall at a Mennonite community gathering in New Brunswick. Article content Article content There were also two cases in the Eastern Ontario Health Unit, south and east of Ottawa, the first in that area. Renfrew County and the South East Health Unit, both of which border Ottawa, have previously reported cases associated with the large outbreak. Article content Article content Earlier this month, Ottawa Public Health reported two cases of measles, the city's first since 2019, in an adult and child from the same family who had recently travelled internationally. There have been no reports of spread associated with those cases and they are not related to the larger outbreak, which is community spread. Article content The majority of infections have been in infants, children and adolescents who were unvaccinated. To date, 119 people have been hospitalized as a result of measles infections in Ontario and nine have required intensive care. There have been no deaths. Article content The outbreak has become a hot-button political issue with opposition politicians calling for the government to do more to promote vaccination uptake and counter lagging vaccination rates. Article content Public health officials and local infection control experts have warned that measles cases related to the outbreak, and infections related to travel, will likely continue. Article content
CTV News
09-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Eastern Ontario Health Unit confirms 2 cases of measles
The Eastern Ontario Health Unit says it has confirmed two cases of measles in its jurisdiction, the first cases since an outbreak began in Ontario last fall. The health unit says the two individuals are related and are currently isolating themselves. They contracted the virus while outside the region. One was not vaccinated against measles, the health unit said, while the vaccination status of the other is unknown. 'At this time, the risk to the general population remains low. The health unit's investigation is ongoing and individuals who may have been exposed to these confirmed cases of measles have been contacted,' the health unit said in a news release. No public exposure sites have been identified. The health unit says, should a possible exposure location be identified and potential contacts cannot be reached, a public notice will be issued. The Eastern Ontario Health Unit serves a population of approximately 200,000 people in the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, Prescott-Russell, and the City of Cornwall. Public Health Ontario has identified 1,440 cases of measles in the province since an outbreak began in October. Ottawa Public Health announced its first two cases of measles since 2019 last week, with potential exposure sites at two grocery stores. The health unit in Gatineau said the pair had also attended a local petting zoo. Symptoms of measles include high fever, cough, runny nose, white spots in the mouth, and red watery eyes that may be sensitive to light, followed by a rash that spreads down the body. Symptoms typically last from one to two weeks. The Eastern Ontario Health Unit is urging residents to check their vaccination records to ensure they are protected. If you have reported your immunizations to your health unit, you can verify them online by visiting More details about obtaining vaccines can be found on the health unit's website.
Ottawa Citizen
08-05-2025
- Health
- Ottawa Citizen
More measles cases in Ottawa likely as counts grow in Ontario, around world
A week after Ottawa Public Health confirmed the city's first measles cases in six years, an infectious disease specialist is warning Ottawa residents to expect more travel-related cases. Article content Article content 'I think people should be prepared for potentially further cases to occur in Ottawa. With so much international travel, it wouldn't be surprising to see further cases that have been acquired internationally or in other parts of Canada,' said Dr. Eric Eckbo, a medical consultant on The Ottawa Hospital's infection prevention and control team. Article content Article content Last week, OPH confirmed cases in an adult and child who became infected while travelling internationally. There have been no reports of any new cases in Ottawa since then and the risk to the public is considered low. Article content Article content But, amid a large and growing outbreak in Ontario, health officials remain on high alert for more cases of measles and pressure is growing on the provincial government to do more to prevent the spread of the highly contagious illness. Article content On Thursday, Public Health Ontario reported 197 new cases in the past week alone related to a large outbreak traced to a gathering in New Brunswick last fall. Since October, there have been a total of 1,440 Ontario cases related to that outbreak, largely among infants, children and youth who were not vaccinated. Article content The bulk of the cases have been centred in parts of southwestern Ontario that are now considered high risk for travel by public health officials. The outbreak began in a Mennonite gathering. Article content The Ottawa cases are not connected to the Ontario outbreak, but rather are among 12 cases in the province since the beginning of 2025 linked to travel as opposed to domestic spread. An additional 37 Ontario cases had no known source of exposure. Article content Article content The large and ongoing outbreak of a vaccine preventable illness has been the focus of opposition parties at Queen's Park this week. Article content NDP leader Marit Stiles called on the provincial government to take action to get the outbreak under control, saying she was shocked to hear both Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Sylvia Jones defend their records on the issue as cases continued to climb by the hundreds every week. Article content 'In the face of the worst outbreak in decades, the government's approach is clearly not working,' Stiles said. 'We need real leadership and a serious plan to protect people.' Article content Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, has said in interviews that the province will likely continue to see the spread of measles until summer. Article content Ottawa Public Health officials have said they are confident vaccination levels are relatively high in Ottawa, which will help prevent community spread. Routine vaccine coverage has dropped across Ontario for a number of reasons, including the COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage of primary caregivers and the growth of vaccine hesitancy.
