Calls for B.C. to track COVID-19, flu and RSV case numbers

As hospitals here in B.C. and across the country deal with a surge of cases in this so-called “tripledemic” and parents struggle to find children’s pain relief medication, one expert says there is a need for information as it seems the province has lost track of tracking.

Sarah Otto is a professor at the University of British Columbia and a member of B.C.’s independent COVID-19 modelling group, and says the more information people have right now can help them make better decisions when it comes to their health.

“I think it’s really challenging at the moment because we’ve lost track of COVID numbers. We know we’re underreporting. The last estimate back in August was 100-fold underreporting and I suspect it’s even worse now. On top of that, we don’t really have a good handle on how much flu we have and how much RSV in our populations — it’s just making it hard for people to make informed decisions,” she said.

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The need for better decision-making isn’t just for people, but for the larger community, she says.

“Businesses need to know this for business policies. Do you require your employees to wear a mask? How much sick leave do you offer? Do you encourage your staff to stay home? Schools need to this to also make informed decisions,” adds Otto.

She says if people are aware of how bad things are right now, it can also help them decide if they’re going to mask up again, stay home and it will add to the urgency to get a flu and COVID-19 booster shot.

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“I think it’s still making it very hard for individuals to know, ‘Where are we in the risk?’ I want to know what my risks are. I want something like an air quality index — I want a respiratory quality [index] and right now our respiratory quality in British Columbia is not healthy. It’s at a high risk and I think the public wants to know that.”

Otto says what’s needed is widespread surveillance of the overall population to help gauge illness levels. Right now, case numbers are being detected when someone is tested at the hospital, which she feels, is just a snapshot.

“Other countries do this. They track a cohort of people over time — that’s called surveillance sampling. We could do that here too in British Columbia and I think that would give us a better sense across the province of just how much of these respiratory illnesses are in our community. How much COVID is there at the moment? Because without knowing that it’s going to be very hard to convince our population to mask or get vaccinated.”

The most recent statistics from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) shows less than one-third of the province’s overall population has had their second COVID-19 booster shot, with numbers dropped based on age.

The most recent statistics from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) shows less than one-third of the province’s overall population has had their second COVID-19 booster shot, with numbers dropped based on age. (BCCDC)

Despite calls from community groups, the provincial government says it’s not bringing back the mask mandate right now. Otto says if they stick with that and people are managing their own healthcare decisions, then releasing case numbers will help.

“I think we’re getting a lot of mixed messages about masking not mattering from the province and that doesn’t match scientific evidence elsewhere. Masks are 100 per cent perfect, let me be clear about this. They don’t 100 per cent reduce your risk of getting infected but they do reduce transmission, especially well-fitting surgical or N95 masks. That can lower the chance that you get COVID-19 or any of these other respiratory illnesses, but in addition to that, it can prevent you from unwittingly infecting others and that is the civil discourse we need.”

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said earlier this month if you’re not feeling well, even if it’s a case of the sniffles, stay home. And if you feel like you could be fighting something off, wear a mask. She said she doesn’t believe in the “heavy hand” approach of a mask mandate.