B.C. must find 'sweet spot' for increasing social interactions over the summer, says top doctor

B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced 29 new coronavirus cases in the province on Saturday, bringing the current total to 1,647.

Three more people have died of COVID-19, all in long-term care homes, bringing the total number of deaths in B.C. to 81.

Henry said B.C. will be thinking in "two-week increments" as it begins to lift some restrictions, possibly in mid-May, in a "best case scenario." 

She said B.C. residents will likely have more opportunities for social interactions over the summer, but that "realistically, there will be no major events this summer."

"I would tell people to think small. We are not going to be having large gatherings," she said.

Henry said B.C. will remain vulnerable to outbreaks and challenges in other provinces, and that, though the curve appears to have flattened, it's too early to relax current physical distancing measures.

Restrictions that could be lifted, should B.C. manage to hold its line throughout the next month, include elective surgeries, and children returning to school.

But overall, B.C. residents should be prepared for restrictions to be lifted "gradually and thoughtfully" — and the goal to ease restrictions in mid-May is not a hard date. 

"We really are in a hurricane, in a major storm, but we have made considerable progress in our province," she said.

"We can't lose sight that we continue to have people who are affected by this, we continue to have outbreaks, we continue to have transmission, and so we are not at the point yet where we can let [down] our guard ... the storm is still raging," she said.

Henry said she remains concerned about the possibility of sudden outbreaks and clusters.

"There's ongoing challenges in Quebec and Ontario in particular, and what happens there affects us," she said.

Henry said that one month after the province implemented physical distancing measures and closed businesses, the majority of transmission is not coming from fleeting contact in grocery stores or outside.

"For the most part, what we're seeing is people who have spent time together inside in a space together, in close contact," she said.

"That's why it's so important right now to not have those gatherings where we're coming together and mixing, we know that people can have very mild symptoms or be early on in their symptoms and may not even recognize that they have it."

Henry said that over the summer, business owners should consider a "hybrid model" — and think about how they can reopen while maintaining physical distancing, increasing online options and offering pick-up.

There are currently 115 people in hospital, with 54 people in intensive care.

In total, 987 people in B.C. have fully recovered.

The outbreak at a Mission correctional facility continues, with 70 people infected, 60 of them inmates.

There are currently no new outbreaks in long-term care homes, but 20 outbreaks in those facilities remain active.

If you have a COVID-19-related story we should pursue that affects British Columbians, please email us at impact@cbc.ca.