COVID-19 in Sudbury & districts: Your weekly update January 7, 2021

Reporting period: Thursday, December 31, 2020, to Wednesday, January 6, 2021.

January 7, 2021 — The following is a summary of how the status of COVID-19 has changed in Public Health Sudbury & Districts’ service area over the last seven days up to end of day January 6, 2021: 29 new cases, 14 cases were resolved, 0 deaths occurred. Two (2) outbreaks were declared, 1 in a long-term care home and 1 in a retirement home. At end of day January 6, 2021, there were 32 active cases in our service area. One (1) of these cases was hospitalized, while the rest were self-isolating.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been a total of 304 local cases of which 272 are resolved, and two people have died in our service area.

Trends in the past seven days

• Of the 29 new cases in our service area, 13 were close contacts of confirmed cases. This means that Public Health identified how these people were exposed to COVID-19 and was able to take quick action to prevent further spread. The source of exposure was unknown for 5 cases, while 11 cases remain under investigation
• None of the new cases had acquired their infection due to an outbreak in the past 7 days. Two (2) of the cases had travelled to other areas of the province where then were exposed to confirmed cases. Two (2) additional cases were related to these cases who had travelled.
• Twenty-four (24) of the cases were from Greater Sudbury, while 5 reside in the Manitoulin District.
• By end of day on January 6, contact tracing information was available for all 29 of the new cases. Through our investigation, we identified 214 people who had high-risk close contacts with these cases. That is an average of 7 high-risk close contacts per case, compared to 6 contacts per case on average last week. Public Health follows up directly and regularly with every high-risk close contact to monitor them for symptoms, ensure they are self-isolating, and make recommendations for testing according to provincial guidance.
• The 7-day incidence rate was 14.6 new cases per 100 000 population (compared to 7.0 for the previous 7 days).
• The percent positivity was 0.91% for the period of December 31 to January 6 (compared to 0.35% for the previous 7 days).
• For the period of December 30 to January 5, the effective reproductive number (Rt) was 1.12 for Northern Ontario, and 1.20 for Ontario overall.

Stay COVID-safe

• The Provincewide Shutdown (Government of Ontario) remains in effect. Stay home as much as possible and limit outings to essential reasons only. Our actions now can help keep COVID-19 at bay.
• Sick? Stay home. If you have symptoms, even mild ones, please avoid interacting with others. Don’t go into work, opt for delivery or curbside pick-up of necessities like groceries and medication.
• Essential workers continue to work every day throughout the shutdown. As customers, don’t forget to be COVID-safe. Wear a mask and keep your distance to protect everyone.
• Planning on spending time outdoors during the shutdown? Whether engaging in physical activity or connecting with others, make sure to keep your distance—even outside. Wear a mask when staying two meters apart from those you do not live with is not possible.

What’s new

• Local efforts continue to be underway to plan for an effective rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, under the leadership of Public Health and in collaboration with key partners. Public Health issues periodic bulletins on vaccine and vaccine planning activities in the region, available at phsd.ca.
• Public Health’s website now also includes information about COVID-19 vaccines in the form of frequently asked questions. Undoubtedly, there is more to come on this topic and Public Health is committed to updating this webpage in a timely manner.

Message from Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, Medical Officer of Health

Unsurprisingly yet unfortunately, Sudbury and districts have not been spared from a rise in COVID-19 cases following the holidays. We are once again seeing locally how quickly cases can increase, leading to further spread in our communities and outbreaks in vulnerable settings. As Ontario rolls out the COVID-19 vaccination program, we are excited about starting up locally. We continue to lead local planning, working closely with our community partners so that we are prepared for a safe, effective, and efficient rollout of the vaccine in our area. When paired with our ongoing efforts and commitment to follow COVID-safe behaviours, the vaccines will be a critical tool in our fight against COVID-19. Keeping our numbers low means everyone benefits and we cannot afford to lose ground while waiting for the vaccine. Let’s remember to be kind and continue to offer support, compassion, and patience to each other and ourselves in the year ahead. Here’s to a much healthier 2021!

Regular updates

Visit phsd.ca/COVID-19/data for regular updates about COVID-19 testing, confirmed cases, as well as outbreaks and potential exposures in Greater Sudbury, the District of Sudbury, and the District of Manitoulin. In addition, a detailed epidemiology summary is posted Mondays and Thursdays that includes information about cases over time, case characteristics, probable exposures, case outcomes, testing, and outbreaks in facilities.

For more information or if you have questions, please visit phsd.ca/COVID-19 or call Public Health Sudbury & Districts at 705.522.9200 (toll-free 1.866.522.9200).