After weeks of urging the Ontario government to reinstate some measures for COVID-19 during the sixth wave, three senior doctors have written to the province’s chief medical officer to demand reinstatement of mandatory camouflage in all indoor areas.
Each of these health professionals signed a letter to Dr. Kieran Moore to highlight their concerns about the burden that COVID-19 continues to place on their communities:
- Dr. Shanker Nesaturai, acting medical officer at Windsor-Essex.
- Dr. Mustafa Hirji, a medical specialist in Niagara.
- Dr. Thomas Pigot of Public Health in Peterborough.
For weeks, the three have stressed the need for a regional approach to tackling the number of COVID-19 cases.
“We are writing today to commend you for your leadership last week … to continue the requirements for a mask in several high-risk conditions,” the letter said.
“We are also writing to you today to encourage you to build on this action. In particular, temporarily expand the requirements for masks in Ontario to include indoor public spaces such as workplaces, schools, colleges and universities, as well as basic service settings (such as grocery stores and pharmacies). “
At a media briefing on Thursday, Nesaturai said the letter was officially sent out on Wednesday night.
“We hope the province will take action,” he said. “Looking at where we are in the pandemic and our experience, I think it’s still worth the measure.
Ontario removed most of the mandates for masks – including in schools, restaurants, gyms and shops – on March 21. In April, the province extended its mandate for high-risk indoor masks.
The province’s chief physician and some health departments, including Windsor-Essex, have strongly recommended that masks continue to be worn in schools, but have not issued an order or directive. School boards in London and Ottawa have issued their own mandates for staff and students.
Nesaturai said he and his colleagues had a constant dialogue with provincial officials, but said sending a letter was a necessary step.
“I think it is our responsibility as public health to contribute to the dialogue on this issue,” Nesaturai said, calling the pandemic the most significant health event of his life.
Dr Shanker Nesaturai, a Windsor-Essex medical officer, said wearing a mask indoors was a “worthwhile measure” given the continuing fears of a pandemic. (McMaster University)
The doctor said that while he and his colleagues have the authority to issue a Section 22 order in their areas to restore the wearing of masks, they believe the regional approach is the best. The section of the Ontario Health Protection and Promotion Act provides local health professionals with certain powers when faced with public health crises.
“The burden of COVID still remains significant for our society. “We have to learn to live with COVID,” he said.
“But part of learning to live with it is identifying strategies that will help alleviate the severity of the disease, recognizing that there is likely to be increased activity and decreased activity.”
Nesaturai said local and provincial data this week showed the disease was more stable.
On Wednesday, Ontario reported 1,698 hospitalizations with COVID-19 and another 31 deaths related to the virus, as the head of the scientific table says the province may have reached the peak of the sixth wave of the pandemic.
Dr Peter Juni, director of the Ontario COVID-19 Scientific Advisory Table, said hospitalizations and infections seen in wastewater data were gradually slowing.
“I think we are on the right track,” June told CBC News Network on Tuesday. “If it continues [decrease]as we look at the moment, we need to return to our normal state in the next few weeks. “
But Juni warned that “it is important not to overtake,” adding that Ontario residents should continue to wear masks and limit contact when possible.
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