Symptomatic police officers, firefighters, and paramedics are now being added to the list of people being tested for COVID-19.
Dr. Brent Roussin, the province’s chief public health officer, says testing prioritizes those who are most at-risk, and they’re now able to start expanding.
“The initial testing – those returning from travel, those contact cases, those admitted to hospital – now we’re able to expand it as the number of returning travellers are diminishing,” Roussin said.
This week, a civilian member of the Winnipeg Police Service, who worked in the 911 communications centre, tested positive for COVID-19.
Roussin says they will continue work to expand testing within their capacity, but if testing criteria becomes too broad, they risk overwhelming the lab.
Roussin also announced three more cases of COVID-19 Thursday, bringing the total to 224 cases in the province. Seventy-six people have recovered from the virus. Three people have died.
Cadham Provincial Laboratory performed 551 tests Wednesday. A total of 15,259 tests have been performed since early February.
Lanette Siragusa, provincial lead on health system integration, said Shared Health is working on guidelines for the “safe extended use” of personal protective equipment to help manage supply.
She said Wednesday that due to supply chain disruption, they are running low on a few types of equipment.
Roussin said testing hasn’t been expanded further because they are still having problems with supplies, so the focus is on higher-risk people.
“We’ll see how test volumes go, and we will continue to open it up as necessary.”
He said opening it up to everyone with possible symptoms means likely overwhelming the provincial lab.
Testing asymptomatic people isn’t recommended, he added, because they can test negative even when they’re positive.
Asked about what he thought about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s comment Thursday about how we won’t go back to “normalcy” until there’s a vaccine, Roussin agreed.
“We will deal with several waves of this virus,” he said.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Health officials caution against all international travel. Returning travellers are legally obligated to self-isolate for 14 days, beginning March 26, in case they develop symptoms and to prevent spreading the virus to others. Some provinces and territories have also implemented additional recommendations or enforcement measures to ensure those returning to the area self-isolate.
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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