Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Canada's top doctor says the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) has detected more than 100 cases of a new Omicron subvariant known as BA.2, doubling the number of infections from the virus lineage that were reported earlier this week.
Dr. Theresa Tam said during Friday's federal COVID-19 update that the BA.2 subvariant was first detected in Canada in November 2021, and has since been "closely" monitored by experts.
"We're one of the first countries to actually pick up on this variant, and we have at least over 100 identifications," Tam said.
In an emailed statement to CTVNews.ca, PHAC previously said it had detected 51 cases of the BA.2 subvariant as of Wednesday. The agency added that the majority of infections have been from international travellers.
BA.2 is a descendant of the highly transmissible Omicron variant and has been found in nearly 50 countries as of Friday, according to global coronavirus data sharing platform GISAID.
While the World Health Organization (WHO) has not yet dubbed BA.2 a "variant of concern," it is tracking the sub-lineage's spread.
The Omicron variant B.1.1.529 has four sub-lineages: BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2 and BA.3.
The BA.2 sub-lineage is widely considered "stealthier" than the original version of Omicron because some of its genetic traits make it harder to detect. Some scientists say it could also be more contagious, however they acknowledge there are still a lot of unknowns about the subvariant.
"We're still learning, of course, about this subvariant, but at the moment, the international data suggests that it could potentially have an increase advantage on spread," Tam said. "There doesn't seem to be any specific increase in hospitalizations or the severe outcomes compared to BA.1, but we'll be tracking that very closely."
While cases of the subvariant are increasing around the world, Tam said it is still too soon to know how it will impact Canada amid the current wave.
"The vast, vast majority of our identifications are the BA.1, but that doesn't mean BA.2 couldn't pick up later on. There's always a possibility that that could occur, but we don't actually know that yet," Tam said.
"At the moment it is really a BA.1 Omicron wave," she added.
PHAC told CTVNews.ca on Wednesday BA.2 has "many similarities" to BA.1, but does exhibit some differences, including in mutations that may affect transmissibility, detection and possibly immunity evasion.
"There is very limited evidence at present to determine how impactful the differences between BA.1 and BA.2 may be, hence the ongoing efforts by PHAC scientists to monitor cases here in Canada and track developments internationally," PHAC said in the statement.
Despite ongoing uncertainty around the subvariant, the health agency says Canadians should continue to follow the advice of public health officials.
"While the impact of all variants continues to be monitored in Canada, the Government of Canada knows that vaccination, in combination with public health and individual measures, is key to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and its variants," PHAC said.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.