Cold, Flu, & COVID-19

Respiratory Virus Data

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For general COVID-19 Vaccine information:

Call Provincial Vaccine Info Line at 1-888-999-6488 (TTY 1-866-797-0007)
Ask your health care provider
Book appointment with SHN to speak with a doctor online or call 416-438-2911 ext. 5738
Book appointment with Sick Kids Hospital to speak with a pediatric nurse about COVID-19 vaccines for youth.

For COVID-19 Vaccine booking information:
Call 905-540-5250

Respiratory & Gastrointestinal Outbreaks

Social Determinants

Respiratory Virus Transmission Status in Hamilton

November 19, 2024
This assessment will be updated on Wednesdays (delayed by one day if holiday Monday)

Data interpretation provided in the Respiratory Virus Transmission Status Table uses the most recent and up to date data available to Hamilton Public Health from various data sources. All data are preliminary and subject to change. Some data provided in this assessment can be found in the City of Hamilton’s Respiratory & Gastrointestinal Outbreaks table. For more details on respiratory virus activity in Hamilton and Ontario, please visit the Public Health Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool.

Overall Assessment

COVID-19 Transmission Status	Influenza Transmission Status
Low & Decreasing	Low & Stable

What you need to know about respiratory virus transmission in Hamilton

COVID-19 transmission in Hamilton is currently low & decreasing. The number of COVID-19 positive tests & test positivity have decreased, and the number of active outbreaks has stabilized.
Overall influenza (i.e., A and B combined) transmission in Hamilton is low & stable. Influenza A cases remain stable & test positivity has increased. Influenza B cases & test positivity remains stable.
RSV test positivity has increased

How to protect yourself

Vaccination remains an important way to protect against COVID-19 & influenza. Get your flu shot and stay up to date with your COVID-19 vaccinations.
Hamiltonians can also consider wearing a tight-fitting, well-constructed mask in indoor public settings, especially anyone at higher risk of severe infection.
Stay home if you’re feeling unwell.
If you get infected, you may be eligible to receive antiviral treatment. Talk to your healthcare provider to find out if you would be eligible and, if you are, where, you can access antivirals if you become infected.
Visit www.hamilton.ca/ProtectYourself to assess your own risk level, considering your age, health status & the setting.

Status	COVID-19 Monitoring Indicators	Data Interpretation
Decrease	COVID-19 Positive Tests: 7 Day Average	Over the past 3 weeks, the number of positive tests has decreased (8.6 on Nov 1, 7.6 on Nov 8, and 4.1 on Nov 15).
Decrease	COVID-19 Test Positivity: 7 Day Average¹	Over the past 3 weeks, test positivity has decreased (9.9% on Nov 1, 8.9% on Nov 8, and 5.0% on Nov 15).
-	COVID-19 Hospital Admissions: 7 Day Average	Hospital admission data is currently unavailable.
-	COVID-19 ICU Admissions: 7 Day Average	ICU admission data is currently unavailable
Stable	Number of Active COVID-19 Outbreaks	Over the past 3 weeks, the number of active outbreaks remains stable (2 on Nov 5, 1 on Nov 12, and 3 on Nov 19).

Status	Influenza Monitoring Indicators	Data Interpretation
Stable	New Influenza A Cases: 7 Day Average	Over the past 3 weeks, the 7-day average of new influenza A cases remains stable (0.3 on Nov 2, 0.3 on Nov 9, and 0.7 on Nov 16).
Stable	New Influenza B Cases: 7 Day Average	Over the past 3 weeks, the 7-day average of new influenza B cases remains stable (0.0 on Nov 2, 0.0 on Nov 9, and 0.0 on Nov 16).
Increase	Influenza A Test Positivity	Over the past 3 weeks, influenza A test positivity has increased (0.2% on Nov 2, 0.4% on Nov 9, and 0.5% on Nov 16).
Stable	Influenza B Test Positivity	Over the past 3 weeks, influenza B test positivity remains stable (0.0% on Nov 2, 0.0% on Nov 9, and 0.0% on Nov 16).

Status	Other Respiratory Monitoring Indicators	Data Interpretation
Increase	Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Test Positivity	Over the past 3 weeks, RSV test positivity has increased (1.9% on Nov 2, 2.3% on Nov 9, and 2.8% on Nov 16).
Stable	Number of Respiratory Institutional Outbreaks (non-COVID-19)	Over the past 3 weeks, the number of active respiratory outbreaks (non-COVID-19) remains stable (0 on Nov 5, 0 on Nov 12, and 1 on Nov 19).

Status

Other Respiratory Monitoring Indicators

Data Interpretation

Increase

Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Test Positivity

Over the past 3 weeks, RSV test positivity has increased (1.9% on Nov 2, 2.3% on Nov 9, and 2.8% on Nov 16).

Stable

Number of Respiratory Institutional Outbreaks (non-COVID-19)

Over the past 3 weeks, the number of active respiratory outbreaks (non-COVID-19) remains stable (0 on Nov 5, 0 on Nov 12, and 1 on Nov 19).

The table below presents a list of active and recently declared-over confirmed and suspect respiratory and enteric outbreaks in the City of Hamilton:

COVID-19, influenza and other respiratory outbreaks in institutional and childcare settings
Enteric outbreaks in institutional and childcare settings

The data is based on the most recently available information from iPHIS (integrated Public Health Information System) as of 8:30 am the previous day. Updated daily (Monday to Friday), except for statutory holidays. All data is preliminary and subject to change. Causative agents are identified as lab results become available. Information regarding causative agents may not become available for all outbreaks. Outbreak unit/floor/ward information (displayed under 'Outbreak Location Details') will only be made available for outbreaks in hospitals, long term care homes and retirement homes, they will be updated as the outbreak evolves and may change overtime.

Outbreaks are declared in accordance with the Health Protection and Promotion Act (HPPA) and criteria outlined in Ministry of Health guidance documents.

For more information on outbreak reporting in congregate living settings, visit Outbreak Reporting & IPAC for Congregate Living Settings.

Source: integrated Public Health Information System (iPHIS)

Social Determinants of Health Data Collection (SDOH) in Hamilton during COVID-19

Health is influenced by a number of factors, including biology, access to health services, health behaviours, and the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age. These conditions are known as the social determinants of health, and include factors such as income, race, education/literacy, and gender. The social determinants of health can positively and negatively impact one’s ability to achieve good health. When health outcomes are patterned, unfair, and preventable, these are known as health inequities.

Hamilton is a diverse city and has a growing racialized population and a high proportion of people living with lower income. Evidence shows that racialized community members and lower income community members are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 due to pre-existing health inequities. As a result, Hamilton Public Health Services (HPHS) began collecting social determinants of health data from COVID-19 cases to better understand COVID-19 disease prevalence in the community. HPHS also uses Public Health Ontario data to help understand differences in vaccine uptake by race and income. Understanding if there are inequities in COVID-19 cases and vaccination rates helps create focused interventions to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection and support vaccine uptake.

Hamilton Public Health Services (HPHS) has collected SDOH data on COVID-19 cases since May 26, 2020. HPHS retrospectively collected SDOH data on cases occurring prior to May 26, 2020.
- SDOH data collection was temporarily paused in Wave 2 (January – February 2021) and during the Omicron wave (starting December 2021) in order to ensure all cases and high-risk contacts were reached quickly enough to slow virus spread.
Data collected includes race, language, household income, household size and Indigenous identity.
HPHS has analysed SDOH data for Hamilton’s COVID-19 cases at two time points (October 2020 and June 2021). The trends presented below have been stable since October 2020.
Trends in Hamilton’s SDOH case data are consistent with trends described by other regions and in provincial reports.

Summary of Findings

Nearly half (45%) of Hamilton’s COVID-19 cases were racialized people. This shows racialized people were disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 since racialized people only make up 19% of Hamilton’s population.

25% of COVID-19 cases lived in low-income households. This shows that low-income households were disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 since this population only makes up 19% of Hamilton’s population

These results are provided by Hamilton Public Health Services by collecting socio-economic data directly from COVID-19 cases.
Local data should be interpreted with caution, as data are not representative of all COVID-19 cases. This is because HPHS can only share responses from those who provided this information, which would exclude those who chose not to participate, those who were not asked because of changes to the HPHS data collection processes, or cases that were not reported to public health. While HPHS used reliable data (the 2016 census) to determine the proportion of residents who are racialized or low income, these data are dated. However, results from HPHS sociodemographic analysis of COVID-19 cases are consistent with other jurisdictions, which similarly have found that racialized and low-income populations are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 infection.

Impact of SDOH Data on COVID Response

The SDOH data findings led to and/or reinforced the importance of many local initiatives for racialized people and those living with low income. Some examples include:

Delivery of essential supplies (e.g., groceries, medications) to isolated individuals without adequate social supports.
Consultation and support to Indigenous organizations to establish an Indigenous-led COVID-19 call centre and Indigenous-led vaccine clinics.
Consultation and support to organizations and leaders to establish community vaccine clinics for Black and racialized people.
Enhanced infection control support in congregate settings such as residential care facilities and temporary farm worker housing.
Mobile COVID-19 testing and vaccination options in priority neighbourhoods, including homebound options for non-ambulatory residents.
Support provided to shelters about public health measures to reduce transmission.
Prioritization of shelter populations for COVID-19 vaccination.
Designation of two additional “Hot Spot” areas in Hamilton, in addition to the “Hot Spots” defined by the Province.
- The additional “Hot Spots” were selected based on a high incidence of COVID-19 activity and a high proportion of racialized people, Indigenous people or people living with low income.
Prioritization of Black and racialized people for COVID-19 vaccination, starting with those living in designated “Hot Spots”.
Launch of a Vaccine Ambassador program to provide tailored and focused outreach to racialized communities in Hamilton.
Funding for vaccine outreach granted to community organizations working with priority populations.

Hamilton Public Health Services uses Public Health Ontario’s (PHO) ecological analysis of SDOH data for vaccinations. The PHO analysis combines vaccine coverage data with neighbourhood-level measures of diversity and material deprivation collected through the census.

The latest analysis of socio-economic status of vaccinated Hamiltonians (January 2022) found:

At the beginning of the vaccine rollout, neighbourhoods with more racialized populations had lower vaccine rates. Over time, this gap closed and currently the neighbourhoods with more racialized populations have a similar vaccination rate (83.5% with at least 1 dose) compared to the least racialized neighbourhoods (83.2% with at least 1 dose).

Date	Low Diversity Neighbourhoods	High Diversity Neighbourhoods
29-May-21	67.4%	58.2%
19-Jun-21	75.1%	68.2%
31-Jul-21	79.4%	74.6%
28-Aug-21	79.4%	79.1%
26-Sep-21	82.2%	83.4%
24-Oct-21	83.5%	85.9%
21-Nov-21	84.4%	87.3%
02-Jan-22	83.2%	83.5%

As of January 2022, neighbourhoods with the highest poverty (material deprivation) rates have lower vaccine rates (75.8% with at least 1 dose) compared to neighbourhoods with the lowest poverty rates (87.1% with at least 1 dose); however, this gap has narrowed since May 2021.

Date	Low Material Deprivation Neighbourhoods	High Material Deprivation Neighbourhoods
29-May-21	69.4%	50.9%
19-Jun-21	76.8%	61.2%
31-Jul-21	80.4%	68.4%
28-Aug-21	84.0%	70.9%
26-Sep-21	86.9%	75.5%
24-Oct-21	88.4%	78.2%
21-Nov-21	89.1%	79.6%
02-Jan-22	87.1%	75.8%

These results are provided by Public Health Ontario by looking at vaccine rates by geographic areas and comparing them to socio-economic data collected in the census. Learn more from Public Health Ontario

Impact of SDOH Vaccination Data on COVID Response

Similar to the SDOH data findings on COVID-19 cases, the ecological analysis reinforced the need to provide focused outreach for racialized people and those living with low income through the Vaccine Ambassador program and the vaccine outreach funding provided to community organizations. In addition, these data support selecting locations for both fixed and mobile vaccine clinics by placing clinics in locations that are accessible and in or near priority neighbourhoods.
The closing of the vaccination rate gap between neighbourhoods with the lowest and highest levels of diversity provides evidence that the efforts by community organizations, health care partners, and public health to increase uptake have been successful. Continued effort is needed to increase vaccination rates in low-income neighbourhoods.

Date modified

November 20, 2024