2 deaths from previous reporting periods announced in N.S. COVID-19 weekly update

Nova Scotia has reported no new COVID-19 deaths within the latest reporting week from Dec. 13-19 in its final update for 2022.

Updates will resume Jan. 5.

The province recorded two deaths from a previous, unspecified time period, according to information released Thursday. Those deaths are listed in a category added to Nova Scotia's COVID-19 dashboard on Nov. 3.

The province said deaths reported in this category could be from any past reporting period, but most likely to be within the last weeks or months.

Since March 2020, Nova Scotia has recorded 675 COVID-19 deaths.

The province reported 584 new cases confirmed by PCR tests in the latest time period — a daily average of about 83. This is up from last week, when there were 515 PCR-confirmed cases.

Nova Scotia Health reported 164 people in hospital with COVID-19 on Thursday. That is down from 185 the previous week.

Of those 164 people:

• 25 were in hospital for COVID-19 (including 3 people in ICU).
• 86 were in hospital for something else but have COVID-19.
• 53 patients contracted COVID-19 after admission.

The IWK Health Centre reported fewer than five hospitalizations on Thursday.

Health-care staff off work 

Nova Scotia Health said the number of employees off work Thursday due to being diagnosed with COVID-19, awaiting test results or being exposed to a member of their household who tested positive were not available.

There were 166 off work during the previous reporting period.

The IWK reported 25 employees off work due to COVID-19 or isolating because of COVID-19 on Thursday. This is down from 40 from the previous reporting period.