The province of Manitoba’s top health officials were joined by Premier Heather Stefanson this afternoon to discuss the latest COVID-19 update.
Premier Stefanson was joined by Health and Seniors Care Minister Audrey Gordon as well as Dr. Jazz Atwal, the deputy chief provincial public health officer and Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead of the province's vaccine task force.
During the conference, Dr. Atwal mentioned that the COVID-19 virus is no longer an emerging illness and it is here to stay. He went on to say that the ability to contain the virus at this time is limited and it is very likely that all Manitobans will be exposed to the virus in the coming weeks.
Atwal also said that the province will no longer be focusing on the individual cases of COVID-19 but will be trying to manage the risk of the virus spreading in the community as a whole.
Minister Gordon talked during the conference about the fact that one-third of COVID hospitalizations in the province is due to COVID-19 but two-thirds of those in hospital are there for other medical reasons but tested positive later on while in hospital.
Gordon went on to say that the province is aware that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a severe decline in mental health throughout the province and across Canada as a whole. She urged those in Manitoba to reach out to the programs available for crisis and non-crisis mental health services for all ages by heading to the provincial website to find the program for your region.
You can find the list of those services here.
