Ottawa Public Health (OPH) says it doesn't have enough resources to deal with a significant increase in infections linked to a variety of factors, including migration, climate change and vaccine hesitancy.
The report, which will be presented at the next Ottawa Board of Health meeting, finds a significant increase in a variety of infectious diseases when compared to average data from 2017 to 2019. The data does not include influenza or COVID-19, as a disproportionate number of cases occur in long-term care and retirement homes.
“Given the increasing disease rates and trends documented in this report, current resources are not sufficient to sustain the work effort necessary to achieve the goals set forth in state protocols,” OPH said in the report.
“Infection rates are likely to continue to rise beyond 2024, which is expected to place further strain on the program.”
The 10 diseases with the largest increase in confirmed reports in Ottawa from the 2017-2019 average through 2023 are:
Group A Streptococcus infections (iGAS), 110% Lyme disease, 99% HIV, 73% Cyclosporiasis, 71% Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), 65% Hepatitis B, 31% Gonorrhea, 27% Latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), 24% Tuberculosis, 23% Syphilis, 22%
While the number of reported infectious diseases for most cases has decreased during the pandemic, OPH said many infectious diseases are now on the rise and exceeding pre-pandemic numbers. Overall, OPH confirmed 7,608 reported infectious diseases (excluding influenza and COVID-19) in 2023.
This is 6.3% higher than the pre-pandemic average (2017-2019) and 47% higher than the average for 2020-2021, when pandemic restrictions were in place.
In its report, OPH noted that the increase in infections is linked to a variety of factors, including population growth, travel and immigration.
Other factors include the increase in new diseases due to climate change and the re-emergence of vaccine-preventable diseases due to declining vaccination rates since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ottawa Public Health says the increase is disproportionately affecting people who face social and economic barriers that prevent them from getting enough food, housing and mental health support, which the report says is in part due to a shortage of home health care in the city.
Public health officials say an estimated 171 family doctors are needed to fill Ottawa's shortfall.
“When a person is shocked [by an infectious disease] “Without a family physician, affected individuals often need to find another location to receive recommended services for evaluation, treatment and prevention, which can significantly increase the workload of charge nurses,” OPH said.
OPH is calling for a review of funding formulas and Ontario Public Health standards to manage the increased workload.
Additionally, public health officials urged the state to accelerate the development of the ministry's infectious disease surveillance tools to manage and track the spread of infectious diseases.
