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COVID-19 ‘is still here’ says local medical officer of health

With two new positive cases confirmed this week, Dr. Janet DeMille says COVID-19 is still in the city, though transmission is at a very low level.
Dr. Janet DeMille
Dr. Janet DeMille, medical officer of health for the Thunder Bay District Health Unit. (File)

THUNDER BAY - After going nearly two weeks with no new COVID-19 cases in the city, two positive tests this week serves as a reminder that the virus is still very much here and precautions need to be taken.

“I would say that COVID is still here,” said medical officer Dr. Janet DeMille with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit. “It’s in Thunder Bay and other communities. It’s just a very low level and not transmitting well between people.”

The two new cases, which involve a woman in her 80s and a woman in her 60s, were made public on Thursday and Friday respectively. The exposure category for both cases is listed as pending.

The previous positive case was recorded on June 23 and the Thunder Bay District has seen a total of 92 confirmed cases, with three cases listed as active and one individual currently hospitalized.

According to DeMille, the two most recent cases are unrelated and public health staff are working to determine how the two women became exposed to the virus.

“I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that there is a lot of testing being done, so we are certainly picking up people with positive results out there,” DeMille said.

“It is reassuring and I still think it was a very good thing that we went over a week without any new reports. We just happened to have two in very close succession.”

DeMille added that she is not entirely surprised that positive cases are being found and as the region enters into its third week of stage two reopening, there could be more cases discovered as well.

“I think we’ve done really well with the reopening,” she said. “It’s been over two weeks that we are now in stage two, which I think is a very good thing. It does take a while to see if there has been an increased spread. It could take up to two weeks and we certainly haven’t seen that.”

However, even though the region has done quite well in stage two of reopening, DeMille, much like Minister of Health Patty Hajdu, believes a slow and cautious approach is needed before entering stage three and allowing additional businesses and services to reopen their doors.

“I would be uncomfortable going to stage three because it does mean we are interacting more and there is the potential for further spread of the virus,” DeMille said.

“However, I think we have done well in stage two. We haven’t seen anything past a couple sporadic cases. We would be at more risk for broader spread at stage three.”

Premier Doug Ford said there is no definitive timeline for when any region in the province might enter stage three, but did say during his daily media briefing on Friday that the province will get there shortly.

But even though the province has been seeing fewer than 200 new cases on a daily basis for the past several weeks, with travel restrictions being lifted and areas like the GTA being more densely populated, travel does present a risk to the region.

“In terms of reopening, I would prefer a slower approach and be patient and be slower about it,” DeMille said. “As the GTA reopens there could be more spread of COVID in that area, in which case we could be at risk because of the travel.”

DeMille remains cautiously optimistic that the region will not see an influx of cases even with reopening, but it will take the cooperation of both the public and businesses to do their part in slowing the spread, such as practicing physical distancing, hand washing, and staying home when sick.

“If we are all doing that and businesses are supporting that and limiting the number of people who are gathering together, all of this will keep those cases at bay,” she said.

It’s about striking a balance between reopening and reducing the spread of COVID-19, DeMille said, and if there is broader community spread, it may be necessary to close things down again.

And with two new cases being confirmed in the city, DeMille said it’s a reminder that the virus is still out there and people need to remain vigilant.

“That is the concern and it is likely that there are people who have had COVID or do have COVID and is mild or don’t have symptoms,” she said. “We don’t detect all the cases for sure. That’s why it’s very important that anyone who does have symptoms to stay home and isolate so they are not spreading it to others.”



Doug Diaczuk

About the Author: Doug Diaczuk

Doug Diaczuk is a reporter and award-winning author from Thunder Bay. He has a master’s degree in English from Lakehead University
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