Alberta will begin posting the locations of active outbreaks of COVID-19 in continuing care facilities online, as the number of outbreaks in such facilities – currently at 29 – continue to rise.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw said during her daily press briefing Tuesday that listed outbreaks will only include continuing, long-term and acute care facilities, but will expand to other settings in the weeks to come.
“I know the word outbreak may seem alarming, especially when there are a number of them and when some of them show a large number of cases, but it is important to remember that the outbreaks we are posting are any site where we have seen two or more cases,” she said.
As of Tuesday, there were 367 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in continuing care facilities from 29 outbreaks.
Hinshaw expressed her condolences to the friends and families of two additional people who died from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths to 61. One of those people was involved in High Prairie’s JB Wood Continuing Care Centre.
Since Monday, there have been 187 new cases of people who tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total to 3,095. Of those, 1,273 people have recovered.
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As more people are protesting social distancing and business lockdowns, Hinshaw warned of a potential “tidal wave” that could still hit should health guidelines be lifted prematurely.
Albertans are victims of their own success, and the people must resist the temptation of thinking the crisis has passed since the province has not experienced the spread of COVID-19 that health officials’ models predicted.
“That is not true. The virus is still with us. And we need to continue to take it very seriously,” Hinshaw said. “Even as we start to think about reopening again, we can think about this virus as a tidal wave that could have swept in and left a trail of destruction behind.”
She added the “tidal wave” did not strike because Albertans collectively formed a barrier by their actions to prevent the “full force of this wave from striking.”
When asked about groups of people protesting social distancing across Canada, Hinshaw said she completely understands people are frustrated and want to get back to their normal routines.
“But you only have to look at places like Italy and New York to see what happens when the virus is not taken seriously and when measures are not put in place to have appropriate distancing, and we do not want that to happen in Alberta,” she said.
For “many months to come” even if Alberta should end shutdown orders, Hinshaw said a balance needs to be struck between minimizing the spread of the virus and ensuring society can function.
