Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, and Dr. Réka Gustafson, B.C.’s deputy provincial health officer, today (August 17) issued the following joint statement regarding updates on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) response in British Columbia.

Today, we are providing case updates for three 24-hour reporting periods. In the first reporting period from Aug. 14 to 15, we had 100 new cases; Aug. 15 to 16, we had 88 new cases, and in the last 24 hours, we have had a further 48 new cases.

This represents 236 new cases, including 10 epi-linked cases since we reported on Friday, for a total of 4,594 cases in British Columbia.

There are 743 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 3,653 people who tested positive have recovered.

Currently, four individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, three of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. As well, 2,286 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 1,419 cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 2,425 in the Fraser Health region, 154 in the Island Health region, 405 in the Interior Health region, 117 in the Northern Health region and 74 cases of people who reside outside of Canada.

There have been two new COVID-19 related deaths in the Fraser Health region, for a total of 198 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic.

There have been two new health-care facility outbreaks at Czorny Alzheimer Centre in the Fraser Health region and at the Arbutus Care Centre in the Vancouver Coastal Health region. The outbreak at the Joseph and Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre has been declared over. In total, nine long-term care or assisted-living facilities and one acute-care facility have active outbreaks.

There are no new community outbreaks. However, Northern Health has issued a community exposure alert for anyone who may have attended the “It is Time Canada” event in Deadwood, Alta., from July 30 to Aug. 2. Individuals who attended must self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19, and self-isolate and seek testing if they begin to exhibit symptoms.

Alerts are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s (BCCDC) website, as well as on health authorities’ websites, providing details on where the potential exposure occurred and what actions to take – whether you need to immediately self-isolate or monitor for symptoms.

We know that COVID-19 is a virus that has the ability to spread with very mild symptoms. This is particularly the case for young adults.

We also know that the virus can cause severe illness, no matter your age.

Many people may not even realize they have COVID-19 and inadvertently spread it to others; to friends, colleagues, family members or vulnerable people in the community.

If you are informed by public health teams that you are a close contact, it is essential you stay home for the full 14-day self-isolation period.

Additionally, with the number of people in B.C. with COVID-19 today, we are at a time that we all need to be particularly alert to how we are feeling. You may feel well enough to see friends or go into work. However, if you are feeling ever so slightly unwell, stay home from work and gatherings.

Our COVID-19 champions are the people who choose to stay home and stay away from others when feeling even the slightest bit sick. Making the choice to stay home is choosing to keep yourself and those around you safe.

Let’s make sure the gift we give the people we care about and the souvenir we bring back from our summer holidays is not COVID-19. Instead, let’s show we care by doing our part – by working together while staying apart and helping to keep all of us safe.

Lead image: A sign on a doorway leading to a medical clinic in Invermere. Carrie Schafer/e-KNOW photo

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