Ontario Reports 1092 New Cases
Thunder Bay – COVID-19 Update – The COVID-19 situation in the Thunder Bay District continues with increased case numbers. Currently there are 423 active cases in the district.
The TBDHU reports 46 new cases of COVID-19 for March 11, 2021. Thirty-seven cases have been resolved.
There are four more people in hospital.
- 15 Household contact
- 9 Other close contact
- 1 Walford Retirement Home outbreak
- 15 No known exposure
- 6 Pending
38 of the 46 new cases are in Thunder Bay and surrounding communities. Seven are in First Nation communities, and one case in is the district communities.
Dr. Janet DeMille has extended the suspension of Suspension of In-Person Learning.
“Due to the significant number of cases of COVID-19 in Thunder Bay, the Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Janet DeMille, is directing schools in the City of Thunder Bay and surrounding areas to extend the suspension of in-person learning until March 29, 2021. The need for further extension will be considered closer to that time.
On the national side, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Theresa Tam comments, “COVID-19 was declared a pandemic a year ago today. Since Jan. 2020, over 885K Canadians have contracted COVID-19 and of them, over 22K have lost their lives.”
Ontario Case Overview
Ontario is reporting 1,092 cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, and over 60,600 tests completed.
In the hotspots, there are 293 new cases in Toronto, 199 new cases in Peel and 79 new cases in York Region.
There were an additional 16 deaths in Ontario over the past 24 hour period.
There have been differences in some of the media reporting of case numbers.
Some Toronto and national media have continued to report different numbers of cases than local media.
Update on Case Numbers
One of the southern Ontario media outlets reported that the COVID-19 numbers for March 8, 2021 were:
“568 cases were recorded in Toronto, 322 in Peel Region, 119 in York Region, 91 in Thunder Bay, 68 in Durham Region, 57 in Ottawa, and 51 in both Waterloo and Halton regions.”
NetNewsLedger reached out to the Thunder Bay District Health Unit for clarification.
Lance Dyll, a spokesperson for the Heath Unit says, “The reason for reporting differences is the time lag for data entry into the Public Health Case and Contact Management Solution. Some Public Health Units update their own website information immediately, while the Ministry of Health receives the data once a day in the evening. This time lag is usually no more than one day, but means that Public Health Unit data is often the most up-to-date.”
“The discrepancy relates to timing, you are seeing cases we reported yesterday in the numbers today.”
Reporting metric
We report covid 19 cases and their status (active, resolved or death) according to the date those cases or status changes happened. That means case numbers for days in the past are continuously being updated as more information is received.
Some organizations use a different approach where case information is reported by the day it is received instead of the day it happened.
Each approach has its own advantages and disadvantages for public reporting. It’s important to be aware of these differences when comparing data between sources.
Time lag
Another potential reason for reporting differences is the time lag for data entry into the Public Health Case and Contact Management Solution. Some Public Health Units update their own website information immediately, while the Ministry of Health receives the data once a day in the evening. This time lag is usually no more than one day, but means that Public Health Unit data is often the most up-to-date.
Thunder Bay District Health Unit Survey
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit is seeking information about attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge regarding the COVID-19 vaccine from people living in the District of Thunder Bay who are 16 years of age or older. The information collected in this survey will be used to inform the health unit’s ongoing vaccine distribution, implementation and communication plans.
The survey will take about 5 minutes to complete. The survey is anonymous and the information collected will be stored securely. We will be collecting demographic information such as age, location, gender, and race to better understand the characteristics of those answering the questions. All responses will be analyzed and grouped together and therefore, this information will not be identifiable in the findings. Results will be shared with health unit staff and management and may be used in reports, presentations, or for other purposes, but your individual responses will never be made public. Mindful of OCAP principles we would like to remain a supportive resources for our Indigenous partners and would be willing to share the results of this survey by request.
You can access the survey here: www.surveymonkey.com/r/TBDHUvaxreadiness
You may choose not to answer any question. You may quit the survey at any time by exiting your browser. Questions or concerns about the survey can be directed to Eryn Pleson at 807 625 5900.
