HPE public health medical officer says new COVID-19 rules are necessary

Dr. Piotr Oglaza has been the Medical Officer of Health and CEO of HPEPH since July 2018. Photo courtesy of hpepublichealth.ca

By Shira Rubinoff

BELLEVILLE – In the wake of a rise in COVID-19 cases, Dr. Piotr Oglaza said he is hopeful the stay-at-home order will reduce the rate of COVID-19 virus spread in the county and throughout the province. 

The chief medical officer of health for Hastings Prince Edward County says the majority of cases in the area are a result of close contacts. However, there are still cases that have not been directly linked to close contact, so they are considered to be community spread. 

Local transmission, also referred to as community transmission, is defined by HPE public health as “any cases with no close contact or travel history.”

Before the province-wide stay-at-home order, the average number of high risk contacts per case was between two and four, indicating that the spread happened within a household, Oglaza said. 

Over the past couple of weeks, those numbers have risen, according to Oglaza. For every positive COVID-19 case, there are six or seven other high risk cases that are connected.

This might suggest that people are spending more time in close proximity with others outside of their household bubble, he said.

Oglaza explained that the stay-at-home order will “reduce interactions between people and will reduce the chance of passing the virus to the next person.”

Now that the stay-at-home order is in effect, everyone in Ontario has been instructed to only leave their homes for essential reasons, such as receiving medical care and buying groceries.

Eligible recipients for the next rollout of vaccines can pre-register for their appointments online. 

More detailed information about the number of COVID-19 cases, vaccinations and area of spread can be found on the HPEPH website’s COVID-19 dashboard.