Alberta "adopting aggressive new measures" to fight COVID-19, Dr. Deena Hinshaw says at her 3:30 news conference.
"Immediate public measures are necessary."
"Immediate public measures are necessary."
Hinshaw says all gatherings of 250+ should be cancelled in Alberta due to COVID-19 risk
"I am advising all Albertans to not travel outside of the country at this time," Alberta's chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw says.
"This is an extraordinary situation that requires extraordinary measures," Hinshaw says of COVID-19
Hinshaw says four new cases have been confirmed, all in the Calgary health zone, including the one young child reported earlier. Child had travelled recently to the USA.
"I want to assure all parents that cases of COVID-19 in children are typically mild," Hinshaw says. But kids can still spread the virus and the same containment measures are required.
Talk with neighbours and friends so you can support each other in the coming days & weeks, Hinshaw advises.
Also talk to kids, give them guidance, "provide them with accurate information ... in a factual, age-appropriate way."
Also talk to kids, give them guidance, "provide them with accurate information ... in a factual, age-appropriate way."
So the 4 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Alberta brings the total to 23. All are travel-related. One patient is recovering in hospital. The others are in isolation at home.
Hinshaw says Alberta fully expects more COVID-19 cases to be confirmed in the province.
"If we need to implement additional public health measures, we will do so," she adds.
"If we need to implement additional public health measures, we will do so," she adds.
The advice to avoid gatherings of 250+ people "does not extend to places of worship, grocery stores, airports or shopping centres," Hinshaw said.
"Any event that has more than 50 attendees and expects to have international participants, or involves critical infrastructure staff, seniors, or other high-risk populations should also be cancelled," Alberta's chief medical officer of health is advising.
"We don't take these decisions lightly and we want to weigh out the potential risks of these actions against the benefits," Hinshaw says of the new measures Alberta is adopting to limit the spread of COVID-19.
