REGINA -- With several outbreaks declared over the last couple weeks, the Government of Saskatchewan clarified what the criteria is for an outbreak situation.
The province said the declaration of an outbreak is not an indicator of risk to the public.
“Just because an outbreak has been declared doesn’t necessarily mean that there’s lots of cases,” said Dr. Saqib Shahab, the province’s Chief Medical Health Officer. “It just means that there is a focus investigation and some enhanced protocols in place to make sure that any additional transmission is detected in a timely way.”
The province says the definition of an outbreak varies depending on the setting. In facilities such as care homes with a higher risk, an outbreak is declared when just one person tests positive.
The government will notify the public of any COVID-19 outbreaks in SHA facilities including hospitals, long-term care homes, as well as assisted living facilities with a long term care unit; personal care homes and homeless shelters and all correctional facilities.
The public will also be notified if there is any risk of transmission to the public.
“If there’s a situation where members of the public may have been exposed that can’t otherwise be traced, then there will be a public service announcement as part of a news release,” said Shahab.
Outbreaks in workplaces, industrial or correctional spaces will be posted publicly on a case-by-case basis, when necessary.
