COVID-19: Manitoba reports 6 deaths, 141 new hospitalizations in latest epidemiology update

Health officials say six more Manitobans with COVID-19 have died and 141 new patients were admitted to hospital with the virus last week.

The latest COVID-19 data comes in a weekly epidemiology update, posted online Thursday, covering March 27 to April 2.

While the province reported six deaths linked to COVID-19 in Thursday’s update, Manitoba’s total reported COVID-19 death toll rose to 1,751, seven more deaths than had been reported last week.

Further details about the latest deaths like ages, genders and where in the province the latest victims lived are not included in the weekly updates.

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Meanwhile, data provided in the update shows the number of cases found in Manitoba rose over the previous week, as did the province’s test positivity rate.

According to the update, 1,359 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported in Manitoba last week, an increase from 979 in the previous week.

The province’s weekly test positivity rate climbed to 18.6 per cent, up from 13.9 per cent reported the week before.

But provincial case counts no longer necessarily give an accurate picture of active infection rates because they don’t include positive tests done at home and the government has scaled back provincial testing.

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Last week the province announced plans to close all provincial testing sites as of April 15 after reducing hours at several locations starting last week.

Health officials said 141 patients were admitted to hospital as a result of COVID-19 from March 27 through April 2, including 11 into intensive care. The province has said 111 patients were been admitted to hospital in the week before.

The province’s weekly updates no longer include the total number of COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions, instead reporting only how many new admissions occurred during the week.

Thursday’s update shows there were seven outbreaks at long-term care facilities during the week covered by the report.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, visit our coronavirus page.