Dr. Bonnie Henry’s calm and caring demeanour is rallying millions of British Columbians to stay home to fight COVID-19.
The provincial public health officer has persuaded millions to stay home throughout this pandemic
Nobody said that fighting the COVID-19 pandemic was going to be easy. As the Straight went to press, the death toll in B.C. had risen to 105 and the total number of positive tests had surpassed 2,000. But the good news was that hospitalizations were down once again, according to the April 28 briefing, falling to 94 from 97 on the previous day.
Despite the growing number of deaths that have created so much heartache for B.C. families, the provincial public health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, remains a beloved figure across the province. It’s evident in comments on Twitter, Facebook, and media websites, and in calls to B.C. talk shows.
Henry’s mantra, “Be kind, be calm, and be safe,” is always delivered in her media briefings in a reassuring and maternal way, soothing British Columbians feeling anxious, upset, and disconnected by the pandemic.
She tugs at our communitarian heartstrings with her pleas to stay inside to protect the most vulnerable. And her command of the facts has astonished many reporters as she answers question after question after question without hesitation, rattling off scientific data with a precision that has made her a rock star in the world of public health.
There can be no doubt that Dr. Bonnie Henry is B.C.’s Great Communicator. And the B.C. NDP government’s decision to appoint her as the provincial public health officer in 2018 appears to be saving lives.
On April 25, CBC reporter Justin McElroy created a chart showing the number of COVID-19 deaths per million residents in every jurisdiction in Canada, the United States, and Europe with more than five million residents. The lowest number of them all was in British Columbia. Here, there were just 19 deaths per million, which was even lower than the Czech Republic, which has gained international praise for its efforts to curb the pandemic. In contrast, New York recorded 1,085 deaths per million residents, Quebec was at 156, and Ontario had 58.
Unlike in Quebec and Ontario, B.C.’s premier has not stepped into the spotlight to become the main source of information on the pandemic. Instead, this has fallen on the shoulders of Henry. At her daily briefings, she’s usually introduced by Health Minister Adrian Dix, who then gets out of the way and lets her speak uninterrupted.
On April 25, Dix took the day off and Henry held court with reporters on her own. Like on many other occasions, she brought forward some sad news: two more deaths had brought the provincial total to 100. And one of those who passed away was in an unnamed First Nations community, which was later revealed to be Alert Bay.
“Our elders, in particular in our First Nations communities, are culture and history keepers,” Henry said in a sad voice. “When they become ill and when they die, we all lose. And I want you to know that we feel that collective loss today. My thoughts are with her family and her entire community as I recognize the tragic impact this has on all of us.
“It’s particularly a challenging time to not be able to come together physically in the normal way that we would to respect the customs that we have in communities at this time,” she continued. “And my condolences and my heart goes out to this community and to the family.”
It had the classic Henry touch, sensitively respecting the victims while exhorting British Columbians to feel their pain. But she wasn’t finished there.
“As we continue to move forward in our COVID-19 response, it’s important that we don’t leave anyone behind, particularly people who I know are dealing with many different crises, including people who use drugs, people who are underhoused and homeless,” she added. “Everyone in B.C. deserves to feel safe, protected, and supported through these crises. Safe physical distancing and self-isolation, if you’re ill, can be really difficult when your housing is precarious. And this is further compounded for people who may also be living with mental health and substance use or addiction issues.
“We have not forgotten that we have two public-health crises, two public-health emergencies that we’re dealing with in this province. The first of those has been going on for some time, and that is our overdose crisis. And now, compounding that, is the COVID-19 outbreak. For people who are dealing with both of these challenges, daily life can be very much a struggle.”
Politicians can say these words, but they’ll never have quite the emotional impact of a trusted publichealth official, even if B.C. has been abominably slow in providing adequate washrooms and hand-washing stations for the homeless living outside of the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. The only real criticism that Henry has received has come in connection with early comments not to wear masks in public.
And Henry, the Great Communicator, rarely receives pushback from the media, even when B.C.’s level of testing didn’t come close to some other jurisdictions.
Dr. Joseph Finkler, a St. Paul’s Hospital emergency-room physician who survived COVID-19, credits Henry for repeating sound medical advice in easy-to-understand language. In a phone interview with the Straight, Finkler pointed out that B.C.’s success is also integrally linked to a bunch of experts—in fields ranging from epidemiology to mathematics—who have done impressive modelling work underscoring what Henry says.
“When Bonnie Henry speaks, her script is made by a whole bunch of background researchers,” Finkler said. “It’s like Hollywood. She’s not quite the actor, but a little bit…She’s done a great job.”
Everyone in B.C. deserves to feel safe, protected, and supported.
– Dr. Bonnie Henry