Life

Younger people in Canada being hit hard by variants of COVID-19

Published

April 6, 2021

Concern is rising over potentially more dangerous variants of the coronavirus - AFP

Concern is rising over potentially more dangerous variants of the coronavirus - AFP

From Ontario and Quebec to British Columbia and Alberta, Canadian health officials are struggling to contain the highly contagious P.1. coronavirus variant from Brazil, and the B.1.1.7 variant from the UK, and epidemiologists say the country’s relatively slow vaccination rollout could leave it vulnerable to a wider spread, according to the Washington Post.

“This is a reminder that COVID-19 can impact people of all ages, and severe illness can occur at any age,” said Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, per CTV News Canada.

Provinces are reporting increasing numbers of younger people being admitted to hospitals that soon need ICU care, Dr. Tam said Tuesday. “Many of them deteriorate quite quickly and have to be admitted to the ICU.”

On average, there have been 6,100 new cases of COVID-19 a day over the last week, and 31 deaths, up from 4,600 new cases and 26 deaths a week earlier. Most worrisome is the hospitalization numbers, and the share of hospitalized patients who need critical care.

“This isn’t the news any of us wanted, but hospitalizations are surging, ICU beds are filling up, variants are spreading and even people who had convinced themselves they didn’t need to be concerned are getting sick,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at a news conference Tuesday, adding this is a “very serious” third wave of the pandemic.

Ontario has been on lockdown since December 26, with restrictions tighter in Toronto, seen here when it locked down November 23

Geoff Robins, AFP/File

In Toronto, public health officials ordered all elementary and secondary schools to stop in-person learning and shift to remote learning, effective Wednesday, as they try to “reverse the surge of infection that the province currently faces,” Toronto Public Health said.

The province of Ontario, whose capital is Toronto, has already initiated a month-long shutdown that is expected to last for at least a month in response to rising COVID-19 infection rates and hospitalizations.

Provincial officials are debating new and more restrictive measures, including a stay-at-home order, as its ICU capacity is increasingly strained. According to CNN, that order will be effective from April 7 to April 18 and may be extended.

“Current circumstances require that difficult decisions must be taken locally to protect all those in our school communities, including students, teachers, and staff,” Toronto Public Health said.

The latest data from Johns Hopkins University shows Canada with 1,017,130 confirmed coronavirus cases and 23,083 deaths.

In this article:Brazilian variant, Covid19, more infectious, younger and healthy young people'

Written By Karen Graham

We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our dear friend Karen Graham, who served as Editor-at-Large at Digital Journal. She was 78 years old. Karen's view of what is happening in our world was colored by her love of history and how the past influences events taking place today. Her belief in humankind's part in the care of the planet and our environment has led her to focus on the need for action in dealing with climate change. It was said by Geoffrey C. Ward, "Journalism is merely history's first draft." Everyone who writes about what is happening today is indeed, writing a small part of our history.