`Race against time' with variants
Shahab warns community spread could occur in next few weeks
Health officials believe
REGINA COVID -19 variants of concern are now spreading in Saskatchewan through community transmission, leaving the province trying to keep the new strains at bay long enough to get the majority of the population vaccinated.
Dr. Saqib Shahab, the province's chief medical health officer, said the spread of variants in other provinces began with one or two cases linked to travel, as Regina saw at the start of the month. Then over the next few weeks, they begin to see community transmission.
“We're just starting to see that, and I think that's why it's really critical that we not only keep our overall case numbers low, we practise all our public health measures consistently to delay as much as we can the variants of concern becoming the predominant strain,” Shahab told reporters during a news conference Thursday.
He warned that should a variant of concern become the dominant strain, stricter public health measures would be needed.
“It is a race against time,” he said. Saskatchewan has reported a total of six cases of a variant of concern. The two most recent cases in Regina of the B1.1.7 variant first found in the United Kingdom did not have any link to travel, meaning the people became infected from the community.
Nazeem Muhajarine, professor in community health and epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan, said the combination of the province's growing concern over variants, its slow decline in case numbers and the gradual rollout of vaccines put Saskatchewan in “a very interesting place.”
Even as people grow optimistic seeing daily new cases gradually trend downward, variants of concern threaten to pull Saskatchewan into a third wave.
“We are kind of waiting with bated breath to see whether these variants are going to take hold and take off in our communities, and if that were to happen, then the ground we have gained in terms of actually containing the virus will be lost,” Muhajarine said.
“I think it's a race between getting those vaccines into people's arms and kind of keeping the variant spread of the virus controlled and contained.”
The province's best defence against these variants of concern is continued diligence in following public health measures and high vaccine uptake once more doses become available.
Saskatchewan reported 211 new cases Thursday — 155 more new cases than were announced the day before — and one death. Another 142 recoveries were also reported, bringing the active number of cases to 1,493.
The province also saw 2,057 more vaccine doses given out on Wednesday.
A total of 85 per cent of longterm care residents have now received their first dose, and 49 per cent are fully vaccinated.
Muhajarine noted other countries are seeing marked differences in their case numbers even after 30 to 40 per cent of their population is vaccinated and he believes Saskatchewan could see a similar effect.
Cory Neudorf, also a professor of community health and epidemiology at the U of S, said seeing variants in the province without any link to travel is concerning, but not surprising.
He said he believes community transmission of variants will lead to a renewed rise of cases in the province, but said it is impossible to know how big that spike will be.
But Saskatchewan isn't starting from the best place either, he said, noting that Saskatchewan has been more relaxed in its restrictions than its neighbouring provinces and has therefore seen a more gradual decline in cases. Now with new variants being added to the mix, he is concerned the province's cases could once again begin to climb faster than its neighbours as well.
“We're already starting at a relatively high level compared to some other provinces, and so things could really take off quickly if we're not picking up all of those new variants,” he said.
In order to detect cases of the new variants, Shahab urged people to get tested immediately if they are showing symptoms.