New details revealed about the 10 most recent COVID-19 deaths in Peterborough

4 of the ten individuals who died from COVID-19 regionally within the final month both possible had the Omicron variant of concern or had been confirmed to have had it, the medical officer of well being mentioned on Wednesday.

“So we have now seen deaths related to Omicron,” Dr. Thomas Piggott informed Peterborough Public Well being’s board of well being digital assembly Wednesday night time.

Different knowledge he provided the board on these 10 individuals who died:

• Six had the Delta variant of concern.

• 4 had been unvaccinated.

• Six had acquired both two or three doses of vaccine (two had been triple-vaccinated).

• The common age of the ten individuals who died was 76 (youngest was 40, oldest was of their late 90s).

• The youngest (age 40) had been unvaccinated.

• Seven of the ten folks died in hospital.

• Three died in long-term care.

Additional in his replace to the well being board, Piggott mentioned the well being unit has had some workers off work these days on account of COVID-19 because the highly-transmissible Omicron variant spreads.

“We have now had challenges with absenteeism — particularly within the final week,” Piggott mentioned. “However they need to date been manageable and we have now not needed to cancel any providers — specifically we’re speaking concerning the mass immunization clinics.

“However we could but expertise extra challenges with absenteeism, as we get by the subsequent couple of minutes.”

Piggott additionally mentioned the well being unit acquired 2,500 responses after it requested residents to report their outcomes each time they take fast antigen assessments.

Each unfavourable and constructive responses had been acquired, he mentioned, and whereas there was a excessive charge of response round Christmas time that charge has since declined.

The well being unit makes use of this data to assist information its pandemic response, he mentioned.

In different enterprise on the well being board assembly on Wednesday:

Opioids

The board voted to write down a letter to Ontario Well being Minister Christine Elliott to ask for an replace on the standing of Peterborough’s utility for presidency funding to function a proposed supervised drug consumption and remedy website within the Opioid Response Hub downtown.

The hub is situated within the former Greyhound bus station at Simcoe and Aylmer streets, operated collectively by FourCast Habit Therapy Centre and PARN (Peterborough AIDS Useful resource Community).

Final summer time the venture acquired its last federal approval: an exemption from Prison Code restrictions on the usage of unlawful medicine.

Now all that’s lacking is funding from the Ontario authorities to function the positioning.

An utility to the Ontario authorities for funding was submitted in early December 2020; a 12 months later, the board of well being desires an replace on the standing of the request.

Piggott informed the board Wednesday the appliance was for roughly $1 million yearly, however that some providers may nonetheless be provided if that full quantity isn’t granted straight away (as a result of funding is being elevated yearly over time, for instance).

“This can be a disaster — and there’s important service that may be offered in different methods,” he informed the board.

The board additionally acquired a report on Wednesday stating that Peterborough metropolis and county had 44 suspected opioid overdose deaths in 2021, up from 43 in 2020.

Board chair

Selwyn Township Mayor Andy Mitchell stays the chair of the board of well being for 2022.

It’s Mitchell’s third year-long time period because the board of well being chair.

He’s additionally the deputy warden of Peterborough County and he was an MP and cupboard minister within the authorities of former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin.

Peterborough metropolis Coun. Henry Clarke additionally stays the vice-chair of the board for 2022; he was vice-chair in 2021.

Though the board of well being historically elects a chair and vice-chair for the 12 months in January, that election came about at a gathering in September 2021. The board was reminded Wednesday night time that they’d made the choice beforehand.