With an extended stretch of days with no new COVID-19 cases, nice weather, and an excitement for normalcy, the region's top doctor has concerns about sliding back into regular activities.
It's been 10 days since the last positive test was reported in the Porcupine Health Unit region.
Medical officer of health Dr. Lianne Catton said there's a lot of excitement around it and she shares the sense of accomplishment and positivity with the community.
"It is with extreme caution that we move forward and that we enjoy this time of not having new cases announced because we really need to remember what got us to this point. We need to remember the important steps that have enabled us to limit the spread across the region at this point and we need to continue to support one another to follow the measures necessary to continue to prevent and limit the spread of COVID-19,” she said.
Some stores are re-opening, and she noted the new recommendations to wear a non-medical face covering or mask when you're out in public and physical distancing isn't possible. Examples she gave is riding public transit, or in small grocery stores or pharmacies where maintaining two metres of space between people may be challenging.
With the nice weather and declining number of local cases, people gathering in groups of more than five or letting people into their home is a great concern.
Catton said people need to be very cautious.
“People are anxious, they’re tired, they’re lonely and they’re excited to get back to some sense of normalcy and some sense of normal connections and we know that that social isolation is a challenge for many on a regular basis. But we haven’t seen times where we’ve had isolation in this manner for such a broad population for such an ongoing timeframe so I understand the challenges and concerns this has brought and the temptation that’s there," she said.
"I'm very concerned still with sliding back into regular activities and back to the previous way of doing things."
At this point, public health recommendations remain the same.
"Having nice weather does give opportunity to at least have some connection outside seeing individuals around in the neighbourhood, but we need to be extremely cautious that we’re not using it as an opportunity to share not just memories, but to share potentially COVID," she said.
To date, there have been 65 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the region. Of those, 55 are resolved and six people have died. The health unit is following four known active case.
Testing has been done on residents and staff at the 10 long-term care homes in the region.
Catton said they are also looking for other surveillance opportunities for at-risk populations such as retirement homes and congregate settings.
Symptoms of the virus include cough, fever, and difficulty breathing as well as sore throat/hoarse voice, difficulty swallowing, loss of smell or taste, fatigue, muscle aches, runny nose, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and nausea or vomiting.
There are COVID-19 Assessment centres in Timmins, Cochrane, Iroquois Falls, Kapuskasing, Smooth Rock Falls, Hearst and Hornepayne. They are by appointment only and you must be referred by your primary healthcare provider or the health unit.
The PHU COVID-19 hotline is open today from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. It can be reached at 705-267-1181 or 1-800-461-1818.
