268 new COVID-19 cases reported in Waterloo region Friday as hospitals brace for influx of patients

Waterloo region saw 268 new COVID-19 cases reported on Friday.

It was a new record for single-day case counts, beating the total set on Thursday of 232 cases. It comes as Ontario reported a record9,571 cases of COVID-19on Friday, which was3,781 cases higher than Thursday's case count.

There were no deaths reported Friday in Waterloo region.

There were 1,168 active cases in the region. There were 21 people in the region's three hospitals infectious with the virus and six people in the intensive care unit. The region noted people in ICU may no longer be infectious with COVID-19 but do require ongoing care.

There were 17 outbreaks in the community. There were two outbreaks in long-term care homes. One was a newly declared outbreak at Charwell Elmira where there were four cases, three in staff and one "non-staff" case.

The other outbreak was at Lanark Heights long-term care home in Kitchener with 20 cases: Eight in staff and 12 "non-staff" cases. There was one death associated with this outbreak.

There was one outbreak at a manufacturer with three cases.

Of the 17 outbreaks, 14 were in schools. While students are not currently in school, outbreaks are declared when there are two cases and if students tested positive for COVID-19 during the first week of winter break.

The outbreaks in schools were:

• A new outbreak at Hillcrest Public School in Cambridge with two cases.
• Tait Street Public School in Cambridge with eightcases.
• Monsignor Doyle Catholic Secondary School in Cambridge with five cases over multiple cohorts.
• St. Mary's High School in Kitchener with four cases.
• An unnamed private school with four cases.
• Southwood Secondary School in Cambridge with three cases.
• Jean Steckle Public School in Kitchener with three cases.
• St. Luke Catholic School in Waterloo with two cases.
• St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School in Cambridge with two cases.
• Centennial Public School in Waterloo with two cases.
• John Sweeny Catholic Elementary School in Kitchener with two cases.
• Breslau Public School with two cases.
• Galt Collegiate Institute in Cambridge with two cases.
• An unnamed private school with two cases.

Outbreaks have been declared ended at:

• St. Augustine Catholic School in Cambridge.
• St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Elementary School in Elmira.
• Saint John Paul II Catholic Elementary School in Kitchener.

The region's vaccination dashboard showed 75.83 per cent of all residents had received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Hospitals preparefor more patients

Hospitals in Waterloo region are approaching full capacity during what is traditionally a busy season and what could be made worse by rising COVID-19 cases.

Lee Fairclough, in an interview with CBC Kitchener-Waterloo'sThe Morning Edition, said hospitals are actually filling up with people in need of non-COVID related care.

"Our emergency departments have been over some of our pre-COVID levels and certainly all of the beds that we have opened to respond to COVID have also been very full," Fairclough said.

But despite the demand for non-COVID care increasing, she says people should prepare for longer ER times, and if COVID-19 cases overwhelm the hospital system, it could mean a potential delay in other services like non-urgent procedures.

"We're anticipating that we're going to see more patients admitted for COVID. We are planning to be sure that other areas like our assessment centres are going to be available to help to support those that might need additional care related to COVID," she said.

Omicron worsening staff shortages

Because of the transmissibility of the Omicron variant, Fairclough says hospitals are worried about the impact it'll have on its available staff.

"We're also seeing more of our own staff that may have family members at home that are getting COVID. And that's also creating some challenges for us, if staff are needing to be away," she said.

However, come January, Fairclough says new health-care workers will be working in hospitals, trainedto be "a big part of our ability to get back and address this backlog in care."

Although staff are still facing burnout almost two years into the pandemic, hospitals are encouraged by the demand for third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to help curb the spread.

"Hopefully the community will still do all they can to kind of help our frontline workforce," Fairclough said. "It was wonderful yesterday to hear, I think that we had more than 11,000 people receiving vaccines in our region and for their third dose booster. I know that that's important to our frontline staff."

Despite how busy hospitals can be, she wants the community to know health-care workers are there for those who need their help.

"People will need to come to the hospital for care. We know thatand we want people to come if they're in need of care," Fairclough says.

"Just remember to be kind and patient to everybody in the hospitals. The health care system is really doing all they can for the community right now, and we know that people are getting frustrated, but just please know that we're doing all we can to serve you."

LISTEN| St. Mary's General Hospital president Lee Fairclough on what hospitals are expecting this holiday season with the rise in COVID-19 cases.