New public health measures ‘a good start,’ says infectious disease expert

New public health measures ordered in Regina to curb the spread of COVID-19 variants were “a good start,” says a local doctor who specializes in infectious diseases.

However, Dr. Alex Wong is ambivalent so far on whether they will be enough.

“It’s hard to really say at this point. Unfortunately, the data is going to tell the story over the next few weeks but it’s a good start. I would say it needed to happen and so I’m glad that Dr. (Saqib) Shahab and the health minister and the premier decided to make these initial moves,” Wong said during the Greg Morgan Morning Show on Wednesday.

“Now that the public health orders are in place, obviously it’s critical that everyone in Regina and the surrounding area follow that guidance and do the right thing. And we will see how things evolve over the course of the next several weeks.”

The new rules are the most stringent since the start of the pandemic, banning indoor gatherings with few exceptions. As of 12:01 a.m. Sunday, bars and restaurants will close their dining rooms. Venues like banquet halls, theatres, bowling alleys and libraries also will close.

As more virulent COVID-19 variants spread, Wong said he wouldn’t be surprised to see these measures applied elsewhere.

While the measures are in place until April 5, when they will be up for renewal, he expects to see the quasi-lockdown continue for longer.

“Most people say that it takes anywhere from 10 to 14 days for public health measures to really kind of start to have an impact,” Wong said.

“Realistically, this is going to be where we’re going to be at, at least for probably several weeks.”

In the last week, Wong has observed a “significant uptick” in hospitalizations and admissions to the intensive care unit. Many of these patients were young, healthy adults.

“(They have) no medical issues (and) no comorbidities, (they’re) just coming in really, really sick,” he said. “(There has been a) dramatic presentation from the emergency department. So it’s a different beast.”

Wong said at several points during the pandemic, the health-care system was to “the crunch point.” The scenario health-care workers want to avoid is one where resources are stretched so thin that critical care cannot be guaranteed but instead provided based on estimates of which patients are most likely to survive.

“We really want to desperately avoid that kind of situation where we can’t provide critical care support to people who need it, regardless of whether or not they have COVID or not,” Wong said.