Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Once of the hardest hit regions in the province by COVID-19, the KFLA region once again finds itself in an enviable position.
Speaking with local media via Skype on Wednesday, KFLA medical officer of health Dr. Piotr Oglaza said the latest numbers give hope to the region.
“Based on our data, our per cent positivity has decreased substantially from earlier this year and late 2021 and is now stabilizing at around eight per cent,” said Oglaza. “This is the lowest per cent positivity in the province. Also our recent waste water data suggests that cases in the City of Kingston, Amherstview and Odessa have either decreased or stabilized based on the signal coming from the waste water. Also our hospitalizations remain stable. All together all of this data points, all of these indicators suggest that COVID-19 activity in KFLA region has plateaued. This is really excellent news and something that gives us hope coming into this new year.”
Updating the community COVID-19 dashboard since Monday, KFLA Public Health noted 14 people are in hospital due to COVID-19, six in the ICU on a ventilator. One new death was reported, bringing the total number of deaths attributed to the virus since the start of the pandemic to 26.
Overall, the numbers are positive.
“Based on our local data, based on the provincial data and in comparison with other regions in the province, the evidence suggests that KFLA region has one the lowest COVID-19 activity in the province,” Oglaza added.
Those numbers are a stark contrast to just before Christmas when this region was statistically among the worst not just in Ontario, but the entire country.
Oglaza said the most recent numbers should give parents confidence for students who returned to in person learning on Tuesday.
“I’d like to take a moment to reassure our community that based on our local data, KFLA region is one of the safest regions in the province for in person learning,” said Oglaza. “We must continue to balance risk and benefits of in person learning to protect mental health and well-being of students.”
He says the numbers show the risk of the virus is outweighed by the harm that can be caused by keeping kids out of school.
“It’s incredibly important that children are able to resume in person learning,” said Oglaza. “It’s good for them, it’s good for families, it’s good for everyone’s well-being. If there are some specific fears regarding individual level of risk for COVID-19 or some concerns about vaccine, I think the best people to talk to are trusted health care providers. They can provide that one-on-one individualized advice that is addressing specific worries or concerns from parents.”
KFLA also continued to be a leader in the province’s vaccination rates.
“Our region, KFLA, along with Ottawa, have the highest school age children vaccine coverage rates in this province,” said Oglaza. “Our data shows that we have the highest first dose coverage for those five to 11 years of age in the province. Just over 62 per cent have received their first dose, which is very significant because that’s 15 per cent above the provincial average. We’re currently fourth provincially for the highest second dose coverage 12-17 years of age. This is more than five per cent above the provincial average.”
“Our local vaccination rates continue to create a strong protection in our community,” said Oglaza. “As of today we have 91 per cent of our population of five years of age and over that have received their first dose and over 90 per cent of population 12 years and above have received their second dose. Additionally, over 70 per cent of those eligible for third dose have received one.”
Working with local school boards, KFLA Public Health is working on a survey for families that they hope will allow them to develop strategies to best ensure those who want a vaccine can receive one.
“This survey will help us identify any gaps in service and in needs and help us deliver COVID-19 vaccine clinics to children in our region,” said Oglaza. “We continue to work with the school boards to organize vaccine clinics on site. For anyone interested please do check our website for pop-up school clinics.”
Information on their vaccine clinics can be found at https://www.kflaph.ca/en/healthy-living/covid-19-vaccine.aspx.
When asked if the numbers support lifting of COVID-19 mitigation measures, Oglaza said those decisions are made at the provincial level and will likely take into account numbers from all health units.
“We are certainly heading in the right direction in the KFLA region and I can speak to the local epidemiology and the local risk level,” said Oglaza. “I also want to remind everyone that while we are able to share these promising news as they relate to the KFLA region, the situation might be vastly different in other parts of the province. We were the first ones to experience the emergence of Omicron and we also one of the first ones to start exiting it. That may not be the case in other parts of the province and any decisions that are referring to the level of restrictions or measures that are needed to keep health care system running in the province have to take into account the situation in other regions.”
He added that KFLA’s hospitalization rate for those age 20 and older per 100,000 population is about half of what’s being seen in other regions.
“That indicator alone can give you a sense of really what the situation is elsewhere and why while I’m able to share this promising news today regarding the KFLA region, it might not be the case for other parts of the province,” he added.
Oglaza said the numbers would likely continue to decrease everywhere as we get closer to spring.
“From what we can see locally we see that the cases have stabilized,” he said. “At some point after the period of plateauing we will see the natural evolution of outbreaks is we’ll see a decline in cases. That decline in cases is something that we all look forward to. With that decline in cases, that plateauing of cases, we’re anticipating our hospitalization would also stabilize and possibly decrease in the near future although that usually follows the cases with a bit of a lag. That’s something that we have to be mindful. That is also going to be aligned with the next few months we’re going to see the conclusion of the typical respiratory season. When we enter the month of March or April, this is typically where these viruses are transmissing less readily and that will also reduce the cases, reduce the risk in the community.”