No quick drop expected in Nova Scotia's COVID-19 hospitalizations

As Nova Scotia begins lifting COVID-19 restrictions Monday, the number of people in hospital with COVID-19 is expected to only graduallydecrease, says an official with Nova Scotia's health authority.

Where cases roseand fell quickly after peaking during previous COVID-19 waves, Dr. Nicole Boutilier said Omicron has been different.

"We're just kind of plateauing and maybe just starting to trend down a little bit and we expect that that will continue for a while, that we're going to getthat very gradual decrease in the community as the wave continues," saidthe vice-president of medicine for Nova Scotia Health.

At the most recent provincial COVID-19 briefing last Wednesday, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Robert Strang said hospital capacity was at 105 per cent.

"Even the number of new admissions to hospitals looks like they've reached their peak, but we have to acknowledge our health-care system continues to be under tremendous pressure," he said.

Strang saidthe worst of the Omicron wave had passed, with labs processing fewer positive tests, outbreaks under control, and positive cases declining in long-term care facilities.

Boutilier said COVID-19 has put "tremendous" pressure on the hospital system, as well as partners like Emergency Health Servicesand long-term care.

"We're constantly rearranging, transferring patients, making spaces, looking after people in different ways in order to accommodate both the incoming traffic and people that are already in hospital," she said.

To free up bed space, measures such as limiting surgeries only to urgent and emergent cases, have helped. That measure took effect Jan. 12.

If hospitalizations spike again, Nova Scotia Health will take steps to make sure people requiring care are treated.

"We have prioritization of things that we do and we follow that list," said Boutilier.

As of Saturday, there were 359 people in hospital with COVID-19:

• 79 people in designated COVID-19 hospital units.
• 133 people identified as positive of COVID-19 upon arrival who weren't admitted because of the coronavirus, or were admitted for COVID-19 but no longer require specialized care.
• 147 people who contracted COVID-19 in hospital.

Loosened restrictions

Beginning today, some of the loosened restrictions mean informal events nowhave gathering limits of up to 25 people, up from 10 previously. Retail stores can now operate at 100 per cent capacity, up from 50 per cent. Restaurants and bars can operate at 75 per cent capacity, up from 50 per cent.

Restrictions will ease over three phases, eachexpected to last around a month.

For the first two phases,masks will still be required in indoor public spaces and proof of full vaccination will be required for discretionary activities. Maskingand proof of vaccination may still be in place for the third phase depending on the epidemiology.

Boutilier said it's difficult to predict what impact loosening restrictions might have on COVID-19 hospitalizations.

"One thing we can say is that we're very pleased that there remains lots of social distancing ...masking, widespread availability to get a vaccination in Nova Scotia," she said.

"And so we have all those things still in place that we need."

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