Saturday April 18, 2020 ~ BC
by Mary Brooke, B.Sc. ~ West Shore Voice News
Today Saturday April 18, Provincial Health Officer Dr Bonnie Henry addressed media and British Columbians on Facebook live, with her near-daily briefing on all things COVID-19.
Leading off today, as each day, with a presentation of current COVID-19 confirmed case statistics, those numbers as of April 18 at noon show 29 new cases for a total of 1,647 cases in BC.
Distribution of the 1,647 cases shows 686 in the Vancouver Coastal health region, 680 in Fraser Health, 97 on Vancouver Island, 150 in the Interior, and 34 in northern BC. | See latest BC CDC case counts
There have been 81 deaths so far in BC (three of those reported new today), with most of those having occurred in or as a result of exposure to COVID-19 in long term are homes. There are no new cases in long-term care facilities to report today, said Dr Henry, adding that in total 288 people have been affected in long-term care or assisted living.
Outbreaks continue in 20 long-term care homes and one acute care facility, said Dr Henry today. She said there are no new long term care facilities on the outbreak list (which is 24 in total during this pandemic in BC).
There is an ongoing outbreak in the Mission federal correctional facility, with up to 70 people affected including 60 inmates. Today there are no new cases in the active outbreak at the Okanagan Correctional facility, or in the nearby agriculture area.
In BC today, due to COVID-19 there are 115 people in hospital. Of those, 54 are in critical care.
State of Emergency continues:
On April 15, Premier John Horgan extended BC’s State of Emergency for another two weeks to April 28, 2020. And tomorrow in a rare Sunday news briefing, Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth will deliver more updates on the State of Emergency in BC. That’s at 10:30 am Sunday April 19 on the BC Government Facebook page.
The State of Emergency is about “ensuring that all British Columbians stay the course, protecting ourselves, families, communities from this scourge of a virus and a pandemic that is seizing the entire world,” the Premier said at the opening of his media event on April 15.
Other comments today April 18 from Dr Henry include that she is considering the possibility of loosening up some of the physical distancing orders (particularly the ones that affect businesses). She also said that plans are underway to determine how schools can return to some sort of hybrid form of instructional delivery (partially in classrooms and partially still at home).
British Columbians have been self-isolating at home since mid-March (with some early-adopters doing that on their own initiative starting in late February or early March). In-class learning in BC was officially suspended on March 17; after spring break the rollout of remote learning has been underway,
Recoveries and Testing:
In total, 987 people who previously tested positive have recovered from COVID-19 (as of April 18).
It should be noted that the number of cases are a result of testing. Many more people in the population very likely have contracted the COVID-19 viral infection, but either their symptoms were mild or they were entirely asymptomatic.
People who have been tested and who have recovered are a prime source for potential participation in providing plasma samples (to help scientists look for and examine antibodies) and perhaps to take part in other followup studies toward the public health goal of developing a vaccine.
Looking ahead:
“We are in a major storm but we have made considerable progress, because of what everybody has done together,” said Dr Henry today. “People have shown their compassion to each other, kindness and commitment. We’ve been protecting seniors and elders, health care workers and the system so it’s available to all of us when we need it.”
“Protecting our own families and communities,” was stated as the goal. She asked that people continue to do the most important things: washing hands frequently, not touching our face or eyes, covering coughs, staying away from others (especially if any symptoms), and continuing to keep a safe distance from people.
Dr Henry asked that British Columbians “continue to bend this curve and make sure we are not transmitting this virus, and bring our numbers down to zero”.
“We continue to have people affected by this, outbreaks and transmission. We’re not at the point yet where we can let up our guard. The storm is still raging. People are still dying,” Dr Henry said as about 2,200 viewers were live on Facebook to watch.
“The risk of more outbreak is a real concern for me and we know this can happen,” the Provincial Health Officer said. “This is a global phenomenon and still a major problem in communities all around us,” she said, leading into comments about Alberta.
“Alberta has done similar to BC and still see clusters there. What happens there affects what’s happening here. We continue to take measures in BC to protect our families and communities,” she said. Some oil and gas industry workers go back and forth between BC and Alberta.
Easing out of restrictions:
“Easing will be gradual, slow and thoughtful. We took quick action to get us into this. Don’t want all sacrifices to be for not,” said Dr Henry about all the orders she has put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We will do it in a measured, thoughtful way that protects us – while opening up economy and health system as we move forward,” she said a bit more clearly than in any previous media briefing. This is obviously in response to social agitation that is beginning to surface in BC, as people continue to endure self-isolation in particular.
“There is a long incubation period for this virus,” said Dr Henry. People can be exposed and not be sick for 14 days. Dr Henry and her public health team are “thinking in two-week increments”.
Regarding the physical distancing and activity restraint that British Columbians did on Easter weekend (April 10 to 13): “We’ll see if there are impacts on our communities in coming days.”
Dr Henry says that lifting restrictions “gradually and thoughtfully” is the approach to be taken, watching in two-week periods and not getting ahead of ourselves. She’s looking to mid-May for any possibility in changes that would affect businesses and people going to work.
She will want to see that there is no rapid growth in the number of confirmed case infections, as has been seen in other places in the world after a period of time in imposed self-isolation.
Staying the course:
Most people are staying the course. ” Do all you can to flatten the curve. You are making a difference, and making a difference together. Be kind, be calm, be safe,” said Dr Henry today with her trademark wrap-up phrase.
Tonight a concert featuring high-profile celebrities gets underway on TV and online at 5 pm Pacific. Organized by Global Citizen on behalf of health care workers and the World Health Organization (WHO), people can sign a pledge online that they will stick to physical distancing for as long as it takes.
===== About the writer:
Mary Brooke, B.Sc. has a degree in nutrition health science with a strong component in community education, as well as studies in sociology. She has been covering the daily BC Health and PHO COVID-19 news conferences, and many aspects of COVID-19 developments in BC. Use the search tool in this website for “COVID-19” to see all articles on this topic.