HEALTH OFFICIALS SHAKEN AFTER YOUNG MAN'S DEATH
Ahmed says initial reaction to case counts was to `just close our office and go home'
“The beginning of the end of this pandemic,” medical officer of health Dr. Wajid Ahmed said on Tuesday, as countries rolled out plans for mass COVID-19 inoculation.
But as he spoke, Windsor Regional Hospital's fax machine was burning up printing notifications from the laboratory in London. By the end of the day, there were a stunning 127 new cases in Windsor and Essex County.
And an otherwise healthy 27-year-old man had died.
It was a cruel day.
Windsor Essex County Health Unit CEO Theresa Marentette and Ahmed fought tears Wednesday as they announced the death and the number of cases. It was the third time in a week I've seen health-care leaders break down. It was wrenching.
A sombre and shaken Ahmed drew a deep breathe before speaking.
“My heart is truly saddened by the news of the 27-year-old male who died due to COVID,” he began. “I don't even want to imagine how hard it is for a family to lose someone that young, especially someone that young.” He cleared his throat.
“I truly want to express my condolences to the family, and my thoughts and prayers are with them in this extremely difficult time.”
Her voice quavering, Marentette said: “This announcement of this death is difficult. I have a daughter (who's) the exact same age.
“It's heartbreaking,” she said, pausing frequently, her face crumpling. “I can't imagine what the family is going through. The pandemic continues to take lives. This past week, every day I'm announcing a new death. It doesn't matter how old you are.
“I don't know,” she said, shaking her head. “I don't have any words to actually capture how I really feel.”
Windsor's case fatality rate is 2.2 per cent. We've logged 1,000 new cases in 25 days. So we can expect 22 more deaths.
That would leave, as Ahmed said, 22 more families devastated.
“I beg you to follow the public health guidelines and bring the cases down,” he said.
Windsor Regional CEO David Musyj received the first indication of what kind of day Tuesday would be in an email that day at 7:29 a.m.
“Please be advised that 71 positives printed off this morning so far,” wrote the staff member responsible for calling people who test positive at the hospital's two test centres. “This is the largest amount we have ever seen print off at one time.”
Said Musyj: “The number kept growing all day, one after another, bam, bam, bam. It was horrible.”
He asked: Do we know who these people are? Is there any rhyme or reason? There wasn't. It's throughout the community.
More than 100 cases were still being investigated Wednesday.
“I've got a big stomach, and it dropped. Cold sweat. This is what we've been talking about,” Musyj said, referring to fear that the second wave would be far worse than the first.
There were 101 cases by noon, when regional health-care leaders met via Zoom. Everyone was stunned. The previous record was 119 cases, on June 28, during the farm outbreaks. We blew by that Tuesday, and we don't even know where all these cases came from.
When he saw the numbers, Ahmed said: “My initial reaction, and I'll just be honest and blunt, I said to Theresa, let's just close our office and go home. There's nothing we can do. It seems like it's just non-stop.”
He swallowed and wiped his nose.
This is how it works. It starts with a wide spread in the community. Then hospital admissions. Then deaths. Seventeen per cent of COVID-19 patients at Windsor Regional die because — if you're admitted — you're seriously ill.
People die.
More people are admitted. Some people still think it's only elderly people with chronic illness who die, as if that's OK.
But that's not how this works, as we've just been reminded.
As Musyj said: “You're not immune to this, no matter who the hell you think you are.
“If (people) cannot see that, honestly, I don't have any words to say,” said Ahmed. “This has been 10 months we've been in this pandemic. Unless we see the risk and the threat as it is, there is no way that anyone can do (something) to protect us.”
So yes, there's “light at the end of the tunnel,” as government and health-care leaders have called it. Health Canada approved Pfizer's vaccine Wednesday and released a detailed plan for mass inoculation. Canada is expected to receive its first shipment of doses next week.
But right now, there's a train coming at us. We have to protect our community.
The province is expected to address this region's status Friday. But we can't wait until Friday. The numbers are not going to get better. That's clear. We need to lock down now.
Does that sound dramatic? So is the death of a healthy 27-year-old and 127 cases in one day of a potentially fatal disease.
You're not immune to this, no matter who the hell you think you are.