The local Medical Officer of Health says it’s good news that Ontario is once again opening its economy after experiencing a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, but she says it’s important to keep practicing safe public health measures to help avoid a third wave.
“We need to have people back to work, we need to open what we can safely open so people can actually have a sense of normalcy and we can get some optimism back,” said Dr. Nicola Mercer in a phone call on Monday. “I absolutely feel we are ready to reopen.”
Ontario is only able to reopen because of the work put in by the public following public health guidelines, said Mercer.
“All of those retailers who have had to close while we do the right thing, we are actually supporting our local businesses,” she said.
Although Mercer agrees with the province’s decision to gradually reopen the economy she hopes people recognize it is a privilege to do so. Although locally more people will be back to work and non-essential retail will open up on Feb. 16, Mercer said indoor gatherings should still be off limits.
“Do not use this as an opportunity to go visit people, which seems to be the default people want to do,” said Mercer. “If we do not gather — if we are following the rules — this disease cannot move. It is person-to-person spread.”
Local schools reopened to in-class learning on Monday. As Medical Officer of Health, Mercer is the one person who could have overridden the province’s decision to reopen them.
“I could have but I chose not to,” said Mercer. “They (students) need that social connectiveness, even if it is in a physically-distanced, masked way. I think it’s a risk to benefit. At this time it is more beneficial for the children to be back in school.”
Mercer suggests parents not consider having play dates in the near future.
“And don’t invite other children to your home. You’re just asking for your child’s class and other childrens’ classes to go home.”
Mercer said if people can continue to practice physical distancing, hand hygiene and mask wearing for another eight weeks the community will be in a much better place, with fewer expected cases and more people vaccinated.
“We are on the cusp of vaccines being made widely available so we want everyone to get to that point,” said Mercer. “I know from a mental health perspective people are really want to break free from all of the restrictions that we have had. I just ask the readers to contemplate that we want to avoid the third wave.”
