Toronto hospitals report zero COVID-19 patients for the first time in months

Toronto's biggest hospital network which includes Toronto General, Toronto Western and Princess Margaret Hospitals, as well as the Michener Institute and a number of Toronto Rehab facilities is reporting that it's officially free of COVID-19.

As of 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, the Toronto University Health Network is reporting zero patients with the communicable disease in its care at the above facilities for the first time in months.

The news is welcome after Toronto Western was stricken with no less than five separate novel coronavirus outbreaks in less than one month's time over April and May, and Dr. David Williams, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, called the update a "milestone," in his media briefing today.

0- ZERO admitted COVID-19 patients yesterday @UHN ! https://t.co/8yj8CDIszf

— TIER at UHN (@TIER_UHN) August 13, 2020

In total, 123 staff members at UHN health centres have tested positive for the virus since the health crisis began, and during the city's peak, the hospitals were dealing with somewhere around 70 to 85 COVID-19 inpatients with the virus at any given time.

Meanwhile, Mount Sinai is also reporting zero COVID-19 patients in its facility, while Unity Health, which is comprised of St. Joseph's, St. Michael's and Providence hospitals, has only three.

Just 43 Ontarians are currently being treated in hospital for COVID-19, 20 of them in the ICU and 10 of those requiring the use of a ventilator.

A total of 4,744 residents diagnosed with COVID-19, comprising 11.8 per cent of all cases, have been sick enough to need to be admitted to hospital in the province since January.