Thread by @cirquiatric

I got the South Africa variant of #COVID19 in #Ottawa and based on public health's response, we are in BIG trouble. @OttawaHealth A thread:

For context, I live alone and see 1 person who also lives alone. We only go out for essentials. On Monday March 8, I get some gastro symptoms, that then went away and didn't reappear. I have IBS, so no biggie. On Tuesday March 9, my close contact gets headache and flu symptoms

His symptoms worsen, so we both get tested Sat. March 13. I have no symptoms (including gastro)from March 9 - March 13 in the morning. By Sunday night, I'm sick and we get our positive tests back. That's when @OttawaHealth steps in and it gets confusing...

My partner gets a call Mon. March 15, is told by @OttawaHealth that his chart "does not indicate"a variant. He's told to isolate until March 20th. I miss their call and get a message that only says that they will call me back, I can't call them. They don't call back for 18 hours.

Tuesday March 16, @ottawahealth calls back. I ask if I have a variant. I'm told that they don't know as positive tests are sent for secondary testing and if I have a variant, I will be called in a few days. They give me a number to follow up. Next, they assess isolation time.

I'm told they'll note symptoms as starting with the gastro episode on the 8th, despite my IBS and no symptoms between. I'm concerned, given my other symptoms followed my partners, just a few days behind, and still, I'm told my isolation ends March 18, two days before my partner

Next up, Contact tracing. I live like I'm still in lockdown, so my partner and I can tell them exactly where we've been at what times, based on our credit card statements. They ask If I've been to any hospitals, schools and retirement homes. The want no other information.

Next, I agree to be part of a study @OttawaHospital to track #COVID19. The categories for transmission are "same household" or "community" contact. My partner is considered a "community" contact despite our, um, exchanging fluids and have sleepovers

Today is supposed to be my final day of isolation. @OttawaHealth calls. I have no fever but volunteer to extend my isolation, because I think the isolation date was early & I have symptoms. Just before the call ends, I ask if I have a variant. He doesn't know, looks it up.

"Oh" he says. "You have 501Y, the South Africa variant. Probably good that you are isolating longer". "Is it? What is the guidance about variants?" He's searching. "There is no official new guidance about variants" he says. "so you don't know if I should do anything different?"

"I don't know". He also doesn't know where I could get this information. Here's what I found on my own: The 501Y variant has a 50% increase in transmissibility rates and there is some evidence that it does not respond as well to vaccines. nature.com/articles/d4158…

The AstraZeneca vaccine in particular, is less effective at least for milder strains of 501Y, according to 1 study of 2000 people. bbc.com/news/uk-559677…

There is at least one known outbreak in Ontario, linked to an apartment building (ie individual units not a care home) of the 501Y variant, that is causing concern. sudbury.com/around-the-nor…

Could this variant spread through building ventilation? No idea, but you'd think @publichealth would want to track it better. My partner called the number to find out if he had the variant, and just got a voice message that said he would get a call back in 24-48 hrs. To sum up:

I have a highly contagious variant and was encouraged to end isolation at the earliest date. I wasn't instructed about extra precautions given I live in an apartment (I informed my landlord). They did not do additional contact tracing despite the info being easily available.

Ottawa has already starting changing quarantine rules for students exposed to variants. Other changes might be on the way, yet it wasn't even suggested I take extra precautions, even though I specifically asked to do so and extended my own isolation. Weve been at this a year.

A YEAR. Yet public health is still clearly understaffed and underinformed. We should be better at this by now. The disaster cherry on top? Remember the @Ottawahosptial study? They sent me a heart monitor today. The Courier would not release it to me unless I SIGNED FOR IT.

I had to tell him over intercom that I had a covid variant and would be putting him in danger to get him to leave the HEART MONITOR for my HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS COVID, at the door without a signature. We are in big trouble, #Ottawa . Big trouble. #Ontario