Coronavirus: Nova Scotia active case total drops to 19

There are now less than 20 known active cases of the novel coronavirus in Nova Scotia, 16 of which are connected to the outbreak at Northwood Manor in Halifax.

According to a provincial government news release, one new case of COVID-19 was identified on Saturday, bringing the provincial total to 1,050. Of those, 19 remain active.

No new deaths have been reported, keeping that total at 58. There have been 973 recorded recoveries.

“It is still important to follow public health advice, practise good hygiene and limit large gatherings,” said Dr. Robert Strang, chief medical officer of health, in a statement.

“Doing all of these things will help ensure our case numbers continue to stay low.”

Of the province’s 19 active cases, 17 are connected to long-term care. The province says Northwood currently has 12 residents and four staff active cases.

One other facility has one resident with active COVID-19.

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The list of symptoms being screened for has recently expanded to the following:

• fever (i.e. chills, sweats)
• cough or worsening of a previous cough
• sore throat
• headache
• shortness of breath
• muscle aches
• sneezing
• nasal congestion/runny nose
• hoarse voice
• diarrhea
• unusual fatigue
• loss of sense of smell or taste
• red, purple or blueish lesions on the feet, toes or fingers without clear cause

The QEII Health Sciences Centre’s microbiology lab completed 494 Nova Scotia tests on Saturday.

To date, Nova Scotia has 38,055 negative test results.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.

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