As testing numbers increase, rate of positive cases dips in Waterloo region

The number of people being tested for COVID-19 in Waterloo region continues to go up, but the rate of positive cases is going in the opposite direction, the region's acting medical officer of health says.

Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang says in recent weeks, the rate of positive cases has fallen from six per cent to five per cent and on Tuesday, during a regular media briefing, she said the rate was 4.1 per cent.

"So that's a good sign. It's a sign that we're being able to test more people and as we are able to test more people, then we're able to get a more precise assessment of the number of positive cases that are really out here," Wang said.

Numbers released by Region of Waterloo Public Health on Tuesday showed there have been a total of 1,257 presumptive or confirmed COVID-19 cases in Waterloo region since the first case was reported on March 5. Of those, 84 per cent of cases have been marked as resolved.

There have been a total of 30,516 tests done. More than half of those tests are fromthe last month. On May 22 the region reported doing 14,707 tests, which is an increase of 15,809 tests.

The region has seen 115 people die from the novel coronavirus. That number has held steady since June 3.

Drive-thru clinic has limited capacity

Public health doesn't conduct COVID-19 testing, but gets information from testing partners, which includes local hospitals.

Wang says the testing centres, including the drive thru one run by Grand River Hospital in Kitchener, have seen big spikes in the numbers of people seeking tests. This could be in part because people who want to visit family in long-term care homes need to be tested.

Cheryl Evans, manager of communications and engagement for Grand River Hospital, said staff felt they would see between 300 and 350 people at the drive thru testing clinic on a daily basis, where there's no appointment needed for a test.

"In reality, we are averaging about 400 tests each day, with one day peaking at 488," Evans said.

There's limited spacefor the drive-thru clinic, which is located at 137 Glasgow Street in the parking lot of Catalyst137, and it can be shut down due to the weather, as seen on Tuesday. But Evans says the hospital islooking at options to move more people through, including possibly adding more staff.

In the meantime, Evans says they "encourage residents to look into their options [and] choose a testing clinic that works best for them."

Wash hands, wear a mask

With the rate of positive cases going down, Wang says she knows people will use that as an excuse to not follow public health guidelines, such as keeping a physical distance of at least two metres, wearing a mask on transit and when physical distancing isn't possibleand washing their hands regularly.

Wearing a mask is not mandatory in Waterloo region, but Wang does recommend it for anyone who can do so.

Wang addsif people don't follow those guidelines, new case numbers could rise rapidly.

"The fact that we still have cases that are picked up through testing shows that we still have community circulation of this virus," Wang said, noting until there's an effective vaccine, people need to continue to follow the measures.

"We are in a much better state now than we were two months ago and so, people can sort of feel maybe they don't need to follow the public health measures as much, but we need to continue to follow it, especially as we open up the economy and lift restrictions."