U of T COVID-19 update

During the week of Jan. 3, Toronto Public Health and Peel Public Health informed the University of Toronto of changes to their case and contact management practices to align with the Government of Ontario’s testing eligibility and case and contact management requirements announced in late December. 

 

Toronto and Peel public health staff are prioritizing case and contact management for only the highest-risk settings. As a result, U of T is no longer receiving official Public Health notifications of positive COVID-19 cases amongst our campus communities. For this reason, as of Jan. 10, 2022, we have paused reporting on our case tracking dashboard.

 

Members of our community present on one of our three campuses or U of T-operated premises who experience COVID-19 symptoms should continue to notify U of T’s occupational health nurses at ehs.occhealth@utoronto.ca, who will provide case management.


In an effort to keep everyone informed, the University of Toronto is posting the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases among members of the U of T community. Data is published every Monday (Tuesday after a long weekend) and Thursday.

It is essential that all members of our community follow the procedures linked below for reporting cases. Our Health & Safety office works with local public health officials on case management, conducts contact tracing and speaks directly with individuals who have been exposed to either a suspected or a confirmed case.

Whether an individual reports a confirmed case or tells us they have COVID-19 related symptoms without a confirmation, we follow the same procedures of contact tracing and disinfection in our buildings. We also provide community notifications and cleaning notifications to those affected. These notifications are provided out of an abundance of caution and do not signal elevated risk or require any further action by individuals, other than those who are contacted directly by the Health & Safety Office.

NOTE: As of Jan. 3, 2022, due to changes in eligibility for testing driven by increasing COVID-19 cases related to the Omicron variant, case counts in this report are likely an underestimate of the number of individuals with COVID-19.

Tracking COVID-19 on our campuses

Last updated: Jan. 6, 2022, 2:15 p.m. ET

Please note, not all new cases reported on campus were acquired or transmitted on campus. These are members of our community who have reported to the Occupational Health & Safety Office that they have tested positive and have been on a campus recently.

One individual who has tested positive was present on both the Mississauga and St. George campuses. Their presence has been reflected in the case counts for both campuses.

4

Mississauga campus

10

St.George campus

0

Scarborough campus

Number of confirmed new cases that were present on one of the three campuses
(January 3 to January 5)

Tracking COVID-19 in members of our community

Last updated: Jan. 6, 2022, 2:15 p.m. ET

Please note, these numbers reflect cases among all members of our community that have been reported to us. These individuals may not have been physically present at the university, and exposure may not have occurred on our campuses. These are simply members of our community who have reported to the Occupational Health & Safety Office that they have tested positive whether they have been on campus or not. As a result, the total number of new cases in our community may not equal the number of new cases on our campuses reported above, which are included in this count. The U of T community is made up of more than 100,000 students, faculty and staff. Some individuals, such as contractors, will not be included in these counts.

112

Number of confirmed new cases reported to us by our community
(January 3 to January 5)

New COVID-19 outbreaks on our campuses

Last updated: Jan. 6, 2022, 2:15 p.m. ET

U of T’s Environmental Health and Safety team works closely with Toronto Public Health and Peel Public Health on COVID-19 case management, including when outbreaks are reported. Newly confirmed outbreaks will be reported here and are generally recorded the following Monday (or Tuesday following a holiday Monday) in the historical data table below.

0

Mississauga campus

0

St.George campus

0

Scarborough campus

Number of new outbreaks confirmed on our three campuses
(January 3 to January 5)

U of T protocols for COVID-19

Students, staff, faculty and librarians who think they may have COVID-19 symptoms (e.g. fever, cough, difficulty breathing, etc.) should stay home, not work, self-isolate and complete the province’s self-assessment tool to determine if they should go to a COVID-19 assessment centre to get tested.

If they test positive for COVID-19 they should immediately take the following actions:

  • Report this result directly to U of T’s Occupational Health Nurse by email at ehs.occhealth@utoronto.ca.
  • Employees should report their sickness to their manager in accordance with departmental processes.
  • Students should complete the self-declaration form.

The Environmental Health & Safety team will work with the appropriate offices to inform those who have had contact with the individual at U of T, in keeping with public health directives. Public health authorities may also contact exposed persons as is their usual practice. Please note: All contact tracing for the University will be conducted by the Occupational Health Nurse. Please make sure the university has your most up-to-date contact information to make this process more seamless.

The University respects the privacy of individuals who are being tested or who have tested positive for COVID-19, and the information will be kept confidential.

For the most current information, please visit the EHS COVID-19 webpage.

Historical data (to December 24)

Numbers in this section are updated each Monday.

Cases:

From the start of the pandemic in March 2020 to the latest Monday update, 556 cases were reported by members of the U of T community.

Please note, these individuals may not have been physically present at the university, and exposure may not have occurred on our campuses. These are simply members of our community who have reported to the Occupational Health and Safety Office that they have tested positive whether they have been on campus or not. The U of T community is made up of more than 100,000 students, faculty and staff.

Outbreaks:

From the start of the pandemic in March 2020 to the latest Monday update, 16 outbreaks were confirmed on our campuses.

Time period Number of confirmed cases in our community Number of new outbreaks confirmed on our campuses
December 18 to December 24
57
6
December 11 to December 17
25
0
December 4 to December 10
5
0
November 27 to December 3
5
0
November 20 to November 26
6
0
November 13 to November 19
6
0
November 6 to November 12
0
0
October 30 to November 5
1
0
October 23 to October 29
1
0
October 16 to October 22
3
0
October 9 to October 15
5
0
October 2 to October 8
4
0
September 25 to October 1
3
0
September 11 to September 17
2
0
September 4 to September 10
5
0
August 28 to September 3
6
0
August 21 to August 27
4
0
August 14 to August 20
1
0
August 7 to August 13
1
0
July 31 to August 6
0
0
July 24 to July 30
0
0
July 17 to July 23
0
0
July 10 to July 16
0
0
July 3 to July 9
1
0
June 26 to July 2
0
0
June 19 to June 25
1
0
June 12 to June 18
1
1
June 5 to June 11
2
0
May 29 to June 4
1
0
May 22 to May 28
4
0
May 15 to May 21
7
0
May 8 to May 14
15
1
May 1 to May 7
21
1
April 24 to April 30
16
0
April 17 to April 23
17
1
April 3 to April 9
14
0
March 27 to April 2
12
1
March 20 to March 26
11
0
March 13 to March 19
10
1
March 6 to March 12
5
0
February 27 to March 5
6
0
February 20 to February 26
11
0
February 13 to February 19
9
0
February 6 to February 12
10
0
January 30 to February 5
12
1
January 23 to January 29
13
1
January 16 to January 22
11
0
January 9 to January 15
16
0
January 2 to January 8
16
0
December 26 to January 1
0
0
December 19 to December 25
7
1
December 12 to December 18
14
0
December 5 to December 11
3
0
November 28 to December 4
14
0
November 21 to November 27
6
0
November 14 to November 20
11
0
November 7 to November 13
6
1
October 31 to November 6
5
0
October 24 to October 30
8
0
October 17 to October 23
3
0
October 10 to October 16
5
0
October 3 to October 9
9
0
September 26 to October 2
6
0
September 19 to September 25
3
0
September 12 to September 18
4
0
September 5 to September 11
1
0
August 29 to September 4
2
0
August 22 to August 28
0
0
August 15 to August 21
2
0
August 8 to August 14
1
0
August 1 to August 7
0
0
July 25 to July 31
0
0
July 18 to July 24
0
0
July 11 to July 17
1
0
July 4 to July 10
0
0
June 27 to July 3
0
0
June 20 to June 26
0
0
June 13 to June 19
1
0
June 6 to June 12
1
0
May 30 to June 5
2
0
May 23 to May 29
0
0
May 16 to May 22
3
0
May 9 to May 15
1
0
May 2 to May 8
2
0
April 25 to May 1
1
0
April 18 to April 24
0
0
April 11 to April 17
0
0
April 4 to April 10
4
0
March 28 to April 3
2
0
March 21 to March 27
4
0
March 14 to March 20
8
0
4
0
30
0