The simplest way to obey virus rules is to stay at home

With provincial measures evolving, experts say err on the side of caution

SASKATOON If you're having trouble keeping up with Saskatchewan's changing COVID-19 restrictions, you're not alone.

Saskatchewan has tweaked its public health measures four times this month, leading some experts and critics to worry the public is getting lost in the shuffle.

Their advice is to focus on what you should do.

“The overarching message from this should be taking it seriously and trying as hard as possible to stay home,” said University of Saskatchewan epidemiologist Dr. Cordell Neudorf.

Since mid- October, Saskatchewan's private maximum gathering size has dropped from 30 to 15, then 10, then five. Masking was mandatory in indoor public areas in three cities, then most communities, then the entire province.

On Wednesday, chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab and Premier Scott Moe announced fresh restrictions effective Friday that expand masking measures and constrain activity in restaurants, bars, casinos and churches.

Those rules were rolled out after consultation with various sectors and contain various exemptions. Sports leagues are suspended, but athletes under the age of 18 can keep practising in groups — though only if they have three metres of distance between them and are masked. Restaurants now have to have three metres of space between tables, unless there's a barrier, in which case two metres suffice.

People are urged to stick to their immediate households, but if they do meet, they're encouraged to do it in a public space rather than a home.

Health sector consultant Dr. Dennis Kendel said people should focus on the big picture. That means working from home if possible, avoiding any gatherings outside a tight household and opting for curbside pickup, takeout or delivery instead of in-person visits to restaurants.

“When we continually change the rules with more and more micromanaging … it makes it difficult for people when they go out to know exactly what they should be doing differently than I was yesterday or the week before,” Kendel said.

Keeping your list of contacts small matters because if you get sick, the health system has to track all those people down — and then potentially their contacts, and so on. On Thursday, chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab said some people had as many as 150 contacts, sometimes because they were going to “multiple social events.”

Tracy Zambory, president of the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses, said the province should have laid out more rules from the start.

“The fear we have is this is just going to lead to people saying `to heck with it, I'm just going to do what I want to do,'” Zambory said.

She stressed front-line health care workers are in danger and implored the public to take the virus seriously.

On Wednesday Shahab said the measures are “proportionate” to the province's needs.