OTTAWA – Canada’s nursing homes were one of the hardest hit in the world at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. But now, early data shows that transmission and deaths from the virus are declining sharply.
Despite the slow pace of the widespread introduction of vaccines in Canada, health officials have continued to provide vaccinations in the country’s nursing homes; According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, about 85% of adults there have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Almost a third have received two doses.
Data released this week from Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, indicates that the relative risk of death from Covid-19 among the nursing home population has decreased by 96%. Analyzes from other regions of the country suggest a similar trend. At facilities in Ontario, the relative risk of Covid-19 infection decreased by 89% among residents and 79% among health workers.
The findings were based on data from Feb. 23, when 92% of nursing home residents had received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, versus 55% of nursing home staff. The authors measured how much the treatment reduced the risk of poor outcomes compared to a group of unvaccinated adults aged 70 or older living in their own community homes.
“This is the first piece of really good news for this sector of the population,” said Dr. Nathan Stall, a geriatrician and assistant scientific director of the Covid-19 advisory panel in Ontario, which compiled the report with data showing the sharp decline in the risk of death.
Dr. Samir Sinha, chief of geriatrics at the University Health Network group of hospitals in Toronto and co-chair of Ryerson University’s aging institute, said the number of Covid-19 outbreaks in the country’s 5,800 nursing homes has risen by 70% since the beginning of January decreased. . This coincides with marked declines over the past two months in the seven-day average of confirmed Covid-19 cases, from more than 9,000 to less than 3,000, and related hospital admissions, from more than 4,000 to 1,600.
Personal protective equipment was put on in a nursing home in Whitby, Ontario, in December.
Photo:
carlos osorio / Reuters
Dr. Sinha said the majority of Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations, and related deaths across the country now involve individuals 65 and older who are still living at home. “That’s why the race has started to get as many of them vaccinated as possible,” he said. Provinces, such as Ontario, are now targeting that segment of the population in the second phase of the vaccination rollout.
Canada’s nursing homes were hit harder during the early months of the pandemic than those in any other major economy, with about 80% of Canadian virus deaths attributable to such facilities. In comparison, nursing homes accounted for less than 40% of Covid-19 deaths in the US. National Institute on Aging, part of Ryerson University in Toronto.
When the pandemic struck, many of the country’s long-term care facilities – a mix of government-owned and for-profit homes – were understaffed, ill-equipped and dilapidated. Canadian Army medics and soldiers were dispatched to help regional officials control outbreaks in these homes.
“Long-term care homes were at the epicenter of the virus [Ontario] for most of the pandemic. And the vaccines have now almost completely put out the fire, ”said Dr. Stall. He described the study’s findings as “spectacular,” adding that the results justify the Canadian authorities’ decision to initially target nursing home residents and staff in the rollout of vaccinations. The US and UK – both well ahead of Canada so far in vaccinating their populations – also recommended that nursing home residents be a priority.
John Yip, CEO of Kensington Health, a Toronto-based nonprofit that operates a nursing home for 350 residents, saw a dozen residents die from Covid-19 in the past year. He said the mood among staff and residents has improved with the rollout of vaccinations. To date, more than 95% of Kensington residents have received two doses and the nursing home has been free of Covid-19 for about a month.
Mr Yip said the husband of a dementia resident wrote to him this week to say that “things are getting better,” and told him how the couple shared a dance while they were masked during a visit to a song by Elvis Presley. Others, he said sporting smiles for the first time in a long time.
“I think we’re almost there,” said Mr. Yip, about to return to a semblance of normalcy. The shift in Canada comes as federal authorities in the US lifted visiting restrictions for nursing homes this week amid widespread vaccinations.
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Canada’s pandemic rules for nursing homes vary by region, although for the most part they remain strict: there is generally a limit on visitors, with a focus on family members who are considered essential caregivers.
The Center for Disease Control in British Columbia said last month that a first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine reduced the risk of transmission among long-term residents and health workers by 80% within two to three weeks of vaccination. Data from Quebec, which has the most Covid-19 cases and deaths associated with nursing homes, suggests that four weeks after inoculation, the vaccine’s effectiveness in limiting transmission among long-term residents was 80%.
Canada’s vaccination coverage, or doses administered on an adjusted basis, has risen sharply to 7% in the past two weeks, although it lags behind almost all major European economies and lags far behind the UK and US. As of Thursday, the seven-day mean in doses administered had increased by 56% over two weeks, as has Pfizer Inc.
and Moderna Inc.
expedited shipments to address shortages earlier in the quarter due to redesign and supply chain bottlenecks.
Write to Paul Vieira at [email protected]
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