Nova Scotia reports 8 deaths from COVID-19 in latest weekly update

Eight Nova Scotians died from COVID-19 the week of Aug. 16 to 22, the province's updated COVID-19 dashboard showed Thursday.

There were an average of194 daily COVID-19 cases confirmed by PCR testing during that time, a decrease from 206the previous week. Eleven deaths from COVID-19 were reported last week.

New hospital admissions due toCOVID-19 were 34, down from 40 a week ago.

As of Friday, Aug. 26, Nova Scotia Healthreported 297 patients in hospitals across the province are positive for COVID-19 an increase of 26 from the previous week.That number includes:

• 49 patients are in hospital being treated for COVID-19, seven in intensive care.
• 138 patients in hospital have COVID-19 but are being treated for something else.
• 110 patients in hospital contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital.

Nova Scotia Health reported 241 employees off work on Thursdaydue to being diagnosed as positive for COVID-19, awaiting results of a COVID-19 test,or being exposed to a member of their household who tested positive for COVID-19.

The IWK Children's Hospital is reporting there are fewer than five children are in hospitalbeing treated for COVID-19.

There are 45 staff members off work due to COVID-19, including nine who are self-isolating.

On Wednesday, the province said masks would remain optional in Nova Scotia schools this fall.

Post-secondary institutions across the province have taken a range of positionson mask use, with some requiring students to mask in classrooms and labs while others will let students and staff decide.

In July, the province limited who can access to PCR tests toselect groups who are symptomatic, including people over 50, front-line health care workers and immunocompromised people. People who test positive on a rapid test can no longer have their result confirmed via a PCR test.

Patients sick with COVID-19 who are admitted to hospital in Nova Scotia areno longer being treated separately from patients who don't have it.

Since March 2020, there have been 492COVID-19 deaths in Nova Scotia.