Public health has confirmed three more COVID-related deaths, bringing the death toll on the Oxford and Elgin counties region to 147.
Two of the deaths – a man in his 90s and a woman in her 80s – were related to the COVID-19 outbreak at Elgin Manor in St. Thomas.
The third fatality was a St. Thomas man in his 30s, Southwestern public health officials said,
The number of ongoing COVID-19 cases in the Southwestern public health region, though, continued to plummet, dropping from 483 to 394 cases,
While were 104 new infections confirmed in the area, there were 193 recoveries.
This active case count, however, has become largely meaningless as public health agencies across the province have focused testing on high-risk patients and settings amid the most recent Omicron-driven wave,
Officials across the province have warned that counts are an underestimate of the actual number of active infections.
The number of hospitalizations remained stable, sitting at 24, while the number of patients in intensive care grew at six. Among the hospitalized cases in the region, roughly 31 per cent have been treated in the ICU.
There have now been 10,862 confirmed cumulative cases and 10,321 total recoveries in the Southwestern public health region since the pandemic began.
The number of long-term care outbreaks in the region also remained unchanged at seven.
An outbreak at the Arches Transitional Bed Program in Woodstock, however, was declared over. An outbreak at Tillsonburg District Memorial Hospital remained in effect.
As of Feb. 9, 87.1 per cent of area residents 12 and older had received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine while 85.3 per cent had been administered two doses. For residents five and older, the local vaccination coverage rates dropped to 83.3 per cent with one dose and 79.9 per cent with two.
As of last week, the region’s three COVID-19 vaccination clinics – Woodstock, St. Thomas and Tillsonburg – are now accepting walk-ins from all eligible residents from 10 am to 3 pm when open.
The health unit also has upcoming appointment-only pop-up clinics in the region with hundreds of slots still available.
Pop-up clinics
Tuesday, Feb. 15: Edison Vienna Museum, 6209 Plank Rd., Vienna. 9:30 am tp 12:30 pm
Wednesday, Feb. 16: Princeton Centennial Hall, 39 Main St. S., Princeton. 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 16: Plattsville Lions Hall, 68 Mill St., Plattsville. 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.