Canada's Top Doc Says COVID-19 Is Under Control & Blames Weekends For Most Spikes

Sometimes it can seem like there's no progress being made on the pandemic front. However, Canada's top health official provided some reassurance that the country is doing a good job. That's even when accounting for some recent spikes in numbers.

In a statement released on August 19, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's Chief Public Health Officer said that, while more work is still being done, the nation is actually handling it pretty well.

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"Currently, our efforts indicate that we are keeping COVID-19 spread under manageable control," she said. "Average daily case counts continue fall in the range of 350 to 500 new cases daily across the country."

Even when there are daily spikes, Dr. Tam said these usually result on a Monday due to reduced reporting over the weekend.

"We will continue to see new cases as COVID-19 circulates in Canada and worldwide," she went on, citing a reality that everyone has come to know in 2020.

However, she also notes that Canada has improved its ability to handle the spread of the virus going forward.

That includes building up capacity in the health care system (which was the main concern in the earliest days of the pandemic) and applying safety rules and modifications to public spaces.

Dr. Tam also said that Canadians have "learned the importance of key public health measures like physical distancing, hand hygiene and extra layering with non-medical masks and other precautions to reduce our risk of infection and spreading the virus."

She also addressed the issue of kids returning to school, saying that the nation will face "uncertainties," but that the country had demonstrated great "strength and adaptability," and that kids will "show their resilience" when they get back to the classroom.

This promising update comes amidst several spikes in active case numbers that have occurred across the country, most notably in British Columbia and Manitoba.

B.C. specifically set a new provincial record for active cases, with 775 being recorded on August 18.