WINNIPEG -- A dozen more of Manitoba’s healthcare workers tested positive for COVID-19 in the week before Winnipeg went under Code Orange restrictions.

According to the province’s surveillance data from Sept. 20 to 26, a total of 109 healthcare workers have contracted the disease since the start of the pandemic, 12 more workers than the week before. Of these employees, 35 are healthcare aides, 28 are nurses, nine are physicians or physicians in training, seven are social/support workers, five are medical clerks, three are pharmacists, and 21 fall into a combined category.

The data, which is used to monitor the intensity, characteristics, transmission and geographic spread of the disease, shows that 68 healthcare workers contracted COVID-19 from close contact with a known case, 11 got it from travel, and for 28 of the workers, the source is unknown. In total, 86 of these healthcare workers have recovered.

This information was recorded during the same week the province announced the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region would have its restrictions tightened due to a spike in cases. The Code Orange restrictions were announced on Sept. 25 and went into effect on Sept. 28.

According to surveillance data, during the week of Sept. 20 to 26, there were 295 new COVID-19 cases in the province, 80 per cent of which, or about 236 cases, were reported from Winnipeg Regional Health. This is nearly double the amount of new COVID-19 cases reported in the previous week, which saw 156 new cases.

The province also reported that Southern Health - Santé Sud Regional Health Authority reported 8 per cent of the cases this week, the Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority reported seven per cent, and the Prairie Mountain Health Authority accounted for three per cent.

The data shows that the volume of lab tests also increased, averaging 1,946 tests per day, and the positivity rate went from two per cent the week before to 2.2 per cent.

The province said about 50 per cent of the cases announced between Sept. 20 and 26 were contracted through close contact with a known case, and two cases are considered travel-related.

Manitoba also saw its fourteenth outbreak at a long-term care facility during this week.