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BACKGROUND: The Laboratory Incident Notification Canada surveillance system monitors laboratory incidents reported under the Human Pathogens and Toxins Act and the Human Pathogens and Toxins Regulations. The objective of this report is to describe laboratory exposures that were reported in Canada in 2020 and the individuals who were affected. METHODS: Laboratory incident exposures occurring in licensed Canadian laboratories in 2020 were analyzed. The exposure incident rate was calculated and the descriptive statistics were performed. Exposure incidents were analyzed by sector, activity type, occurrence type, root cause and pathogen/toxin. Affected persons were analyzed by education, route of exposure sector, role and laboratory experience. The time between the incident and the reporting date was also analyzed. RESULTS: Forty-two incidents involving 57 individuals were reported to Laboratory Incident Notification Canada in 2020. There were no suspected or confirmed laboratory acquired infections. The annual incident exposure rate was 4.2 incidents per 100 active licenses. Most exposure incidents occurred during microbiology activities (n=22, 52.4%) and/or were reported by the hospital sector (n=19, 45.2%). Procedural issues (n=16, 27.1%) and sharps-related incidents (n=13, 22.0%) were the most common occurrences. Most affected individuals were exposed via inhalation (n=28, 49.1%) and worked as technicians or technologists (n=36, 63.2%). Issues with standard operating procedures was the most common root cause (n=24, 27.0%), followed by human interactions (n=21, 23.6%). The median number of days between the incident and the reporting date was six days. CONCLUSION: The rate of laboratory incidents were lower in 2020 than 2019, although the ongoing pandemic may have contributed to this decrease because of the closure of non-essential workplaces, including laboratories, for a portion of the year. The most common occurrence type was procedural while issues with not complying to standard operating procedures and human interactions as the most cited root causes.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: To compare a mathematical tool and time-dependent reproduction number (Rt) estimates to assess the COVID-19 pandemic progression in a Canadian context. METHODS: Total number of reported cases were plotted against total number of tests for COVID-19 performed over time, with and without smoothing, for Canada and some Canadian provinces individually. Changes in curvature profile were identified as either convex or concave as indicators of pandemic acceleration or deceleration, respectively. Rt estimates were calculated on an exponential growth rate. RESULTS: For Canada as a whole, the testing graphs had a slightly concave profile and a coincident decrease in Rt estimates. Saskatchewan more recently had a convex profile with a gradual shift to a concave profile and also demonstrated a gradual decline in Rt estimates. Curves and Rt estimates for Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec displayed a gradual shift towards concavity over time and an overall decrease in Rt estimates, which is suggestive of a positive impact of public health interventions implemented federally and provincially. CONCLUSION: The present analyses compared a mathematical tool to Rt estimates to ascertain the status of the pandemic in Canada. Caution should be taken when interpreting results due to factors such as varying testing protocols, available testing data unique to each province and limitations inherent to each method, which may generate different results using the two approaches. Analysis of testing data may complement metrics obtained from surveillance data to allow for a weight-of-evidence approach to assess the status of the COVID-19 pandemic.
RéSUMé: OBJECTIFS: Comparer un outil mathématique aux estimations du taux de reproduction en fonction du temps (Rt) pour évaluer la progression de la pandémie de la COVID-19 dans le contexte canadien. MéTHODES: Le nombre total de cas signalés a été comparé au nombre total de tests à la COVID-19 effectués au fil du temps, avec et sans lissage, pour le Canada et certaines provinces canadiennes individuellement. Les modifications du profil de courbure identifiées comme étant convexes ou concaves seraient des indicateurs respectivement d'une accélération ou d'une décélération de la pandémie. Le calcul des estimations du Rt a été réalisé en fonction du taux de croissance exponentiel. RéSULTATS: Pour l'ensemble du Canada, la légère concavité des graphiques relatifs aux tests coïncidait avec la diminution des estimations du Rt. Plus récemment, la Saskatchewan avait un profil convexe avec un passage progressif à un profil concave et a également démontré une baisse progressive des estimations du Rt. Les courbes et les estimations du Rt pour l'Alberta, la Colombie-Britannique, le Manitoba, la Nouvelle-Écosse, l'Ontario et le Québec ont montré un glissement progressif vers la concavité au fil du temps et une diminution globale des estimations du Rt, ce qui suggère un impact positif des interventions de santé publique mises en Åuvre au niveau fédéral et provincial. CONCLUSION: Les présentes analyses ont comparé un outil mathématique aux estimations de Rt pour déterminer l'état de la pandémie au Canada. Les résultats doivent être interprétés avec prudence en raison de certains facteurs tels que les différences entre provinces en ce qui concerne les protocoles de réalisation des tests et la disponibilité des données relatives aux tests. De plus, une limite inhérente à la méthodologie de cette étude est la possibilité d'obtenir des résultats différents en fonction de l'approche utilisée. L'analyse des données des tests pourrait être complémentaire à celle des données de surveillance pour permettre une approche fondée sur le poids de la preuve dans le cadre de l'évaluation de l'état de la pandémie de la COVID-19.
