Algoma Public Health is reporting 20 new cases of COVID-19 (#690 – #709) on Sunday, November 14th, all from Sault Ste. Marie and area. Algoma Public Health is advising the public of one potential high-risk exposure to COVID-19.
Potential exposure – Sault Area Hospital
Public health is advising anyone who visited 3B at Sault Area Hospital on November 9, 10, 11, or 12 of a potential high-risk exposure to COVID-19.
Actions to take:
Any individual who was present on the date and times listed in the potential exposure is asked to:
- Regardless of vaccination status, get tested for COVID-19 as soon as possible.
- If you are vaccinated, self-monitor for signs and symptoms.
- If you are not vaccinated, self-isolate immediately for a period of 10 days, starting from the last day you visited 3B.
Details of the confirmed cases:
| Case Number |
Exposure Category |
Status | Tested |
| Case #690 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #691 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #692 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #693 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #694 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #695 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #696 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #697 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #698 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #699 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #700 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #701 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #702 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #703 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #704 | Under investigation | Under investigation | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #705 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #706 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #707 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #708 | Unknown | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
| Case #709 | Close contact | Self-isolating | November 13, 2021 |
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Unknown exposure means the person did not have recent international travel or close contact with a known confirmed case. How the person acquired the virus is not known.
Close contact means the person acquired their infection through close contact with a known confirmed case. For example, living together with a case, or spending more than 15 minutes with a case while less than 2 metres apart, are considered high risk close contact exposures.
International travel means the person acquired their infection from travel outside of Canada.
Critical Actions to protect yourself, your household, and your workplace
1. Anyone who is sick, even with mild symptoms, must stay home and isolate away from others – regardless of whether you have received the COVID-19 vaccine.
- Take the COVID-19 self-assessment every day before work and complete the school screening tool before school or child care.
- Get tested if you have any COVID-19 symptoms, and isolate at home until results are available.
- Household members who are not fully immunized must also stay home until the symptomatic person’s test results are available.
- Isolation means you must stay home and not go to work or school. Do not gather, visit, or have visitors or playdates while you are isolating.
2. Cut back on unnecessary activities where you have unmasked, face-to-face close contact with people you don’t live with. Do this even if you are fully immunized, and especially if you have vulnerable health conditions or are not fully immunized.
- Spending time indoors with other people without masks is a higher risk activity, especially if not everyone is fully immunized. Examples include play dates, sharing meals together, and certain group sports and recreational activities. To lower your risk at this time, only participate in these types of activities that are most important and essential; do these activities less often, with fewer people, for shorter periods of time, and outdoors if possible.
3. Get your COVID-19 vaccine
- Learn how to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Algoma. If you want to be fully immunized by the holiday season, now is the time to get your first dose.
Immunization Status of Cases
Between July 1, 2021 – October 20th, 2021 there were 86 cases of COVID-19 reported in Algoma. Of these, 19 cases (22.1%) were in fully vaccinated individuals and 67 cases (77.9%) were in unvaccinated or partially vaccinated individuals.
For more information about vaccine effectiveness and the reporting of case numbers, check out our infographic Vaccine Effectiveness: Beyond the case numbers.
VOC update:
VOCs continue to circulate in Algoma. VOCs are concerning because, depending on what type of mutations are present, they may spread more aggressively, lead to more severe disease, or have reduced vaccine efficacy. Results from additional laboratory testing have detected the following VOCs in Algoma:
- B.1.1.7 (Alpha), first detected in the UK
- B.1.617.2 (Delta), first detected in India
- P.1 (Gamma), first detected in Brazil
Since July 2021 the predominant strain of COVID-19 present in Algoma has been the Delta Variant (B.1.617.2). Public Health Ontario estimates that in the first week of September, 2021 the majority (93.3%) of COVID-19 cases in Ontario had a mutation profile (N501Y- & E484K-) consistent with the Delta Variant. For more information about VOC surveillance in Ontario, visit Public Health Ontario’s VOC Surveillance page.
