Latest COVID update Sept. 13: Highest single-day total of new cases reported

Saskatchewan has set a record for most new COVID-19 cases in a day.

According to the Government of Saskatchewan’s COVID dashboard, there were 449 new cases in the province as of Monday. The previous single-day high was 439 on Nov. 21.

The government said 387 of the new cases were among unvaccinated people, 48 were fully vaccinated individuals and 14 were people who had received one dose or were within two weeks of receiving their second shot.

The 0-to-19 age group had the most new cases, with 148, followed by the 30-to-39 category (84 new cases) and 20-to-29 age group (75).

There were 209 COVID patients in Saskatchewan hospitals, the most since there were 214 on Feb. 8.

That news came as the Saskatchewan Health Authority said it was increasing the number of beds in intensive care units in the province.

The SHA is hiking the number of ICU beds from 79 to 130, to be occupied by 80 COVID patients and 50 non-COVID ICU patients. As well, the SHA is expanding its hospital capacity to care for another 255 COVID non-ICU patients.

The Ministry of Health also reported four deaths Monday – three in the 60-to-79 age group and one in the 80-and-over age group.

It was the ninth straight day and the 18th in the past 19 that the provincial government reported at least one death. To date, 625 Saskatchewan residents have died due to the virus.

There were 414 recoveries announced, increasing the province’s total to date to 54,764.

The active caseload rose to 3,776, its highest mark since it was 4,156 on Jan. 19. The current total includes 1,038 active cases in the Saskatoon zone.

SHA making changes

As was announced Friday, the SHA is reducing non-critical and elective services so that staff can be moved into units dealing with COVID.

“Temporary service disruptions will be localized and time-limited, as much as possible, while teams mobilize to support both growing demands for COVID care and maintain critical services for non-COVID patients,” the SHA said in a media release.

Elective, non-urgent surgical procedures will be postponed, allowing staff to work in hospital units where patients normally would go after their surgeries.

As well, the SHA is looking to transfer patients to other centres around the province to ease strain in some hospitals.

“This transfer process will allow teams to load level provincially as a system and deal with surges as they hit certain areas,” the SHA said. “It means that some patients, who fit established criteria and can be assured of comparable safe care, will be transferred to facilities that may not match their preference or is closest to home.”