COVID-19 kills 2 more in N.B., hospitalizations up nearly 63%, 1 in 52 people may be infected – CBC
ICU admissions, outbreaks and new cases all increased the first week of October, Respiratory Watch reports
Oct 17, 2023
New Brunswick reported two more COVID-19 deaths and a nearly 63 per cent week-over-week jump in hospitalizations Tuesday, while an infectious diseases researcher says about one in 52 of us are currently infected with the virus.
Intensive care unit admissions, COVID outbreaks and new confirmed cases also all increased during the first week of October, according to the province’s Respiratory Watch report.
Two people aged 65 or older died from COVID between Oct. 1 and Oct. 7, the report shows.
The province changed its definition of a COVID death last month to “a confirmed case who was admitted to hospital and whose death occurred during their stay.”
Asked during a recent media briefing why New Brunswick is now treating COVID-19 differently from other diseases, such as cancer, counting only deaths that occur in hospital, Dr. Yves Léger, the province’s acting deputy chief medical officer of health, said the old method was “very cumbersome and resource-intensive,” and led to delays of up to three months in some cases.
