The first case of COVID-19 has been announced in Saskatchewan today as a traveller from Egypt to Saskatoon has been officially diagnosed.
“We have announced something that we were expecting for a while now, we have our first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Saskatchewan,” said chief medical officer Dr. Saqib Shahab during a press conference on Thursday.
The individual arrived in Saskatoon in early March and was tested upon arriving in Canada. Shahab said other than one person in the household of the effected individual, they have had no contact with anyone else.
“Public health is diligently following up with the individual to see if there’s any contacts that need to be informed to self monitor themselves. The main message for this is that the general public does not need to be concerned.”
Shahab added in terms of assessment they have been expecting a case for some time and will we will see more cases in the future, primarily linked to travel.
Shahab said they will remain being diligent to detect cases which may not have travelled, adding anyone who is outside should practise good social distancing, coughing into your sleeve, wash your hands frequently and use hand sanitizer, especially if you have travelled anywhere in the world.
According to Shahab, transmission of COVID-19 happens when people are symptomatic.
“People may have very mild symptoms, you may have a dry cough or a slight fever which you didn’t even measure. That’s when transmission can happen, and that’s why we say the self monitoring has to be very precise,”
The news of the first COVID-19 case in Saskatchewan comes on the morning Premier Scott Moe officially ruled out a spring election in a media statement.
“We will remain focused on providing a strong, stable government and addressing the health and economic challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. I will not be calling a provincial election this spring,” said Moe.
Shahab said that to date there has been 285 people tested for COVID-19 in Saskatchewan, 22 pending, 263 negative and one positive.
For more information on how to self monitor, or any other information regarding COVID-19 in Saskatchewan, visit https://saskatchewan.ca/coronavirus.
Jordan Stricker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Estevan Mercury
