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By Josh Ryan

Safety first

Small gatherings ok for residents, following safety steps

Apr 24, 2020 | 5:32 PM

Saskatchewan residents excited to interact with other people may finally be able to do so, yet many have questions.

Thursday’s announcement from the province detailed several phases for opening up the economy and slowly lifting some restrictions on people congregating, including expanding the group size to 15 in Phase 3. Regarding social interaction, Chief Medical Officer Saqib Shahab said it’s ok for some small gatherings, such as a backyard barbecue, as long as people minimize the risk of transmission through social distancing where possible.

“As long as people are comfortable and they can keep their interactions limited to two or three friends or virtual households,” said Shahab. “For the most part, that would be something to sustain us for the next few weeks.”

However, Shahab stressed that families and friends must stay consistent. Visiting different friends and family each day presents a bigger risk, which means sticking to just one group for a time is the responsible choice.

“Try to meeting the same people of the same household for the next little while,” Shahab said. “Don’t randomly meet three new people every day, because I think that’s where the risk goes up.”

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Gatherings are still limited to a maximum of 10 people and residents are to stay home if ill.

The concern with congregating, as businesses prepare for a potential open, is creating new outbreaks. Premier Scott Moe said it’s important to remember the people in these small groups are friends and loved ones; the ones you’re trying to protect.

“You should always be thinking of ‘who I have come into contact with over the course of the past two weeks,’” said Moe.

Even if the gathering is small, there’s still greater risk to those vulnerable. Dr. Shahab said careful consideration of every member’s health is key, otherwise, consider virtual households.

“It’s important to for each family, each household, [to] look at [it] in terms of what is the situation?” Shahab said. “Do they have a family member who is at higher risk, either because of age or underlying health conditions?”

In addition to maintaining physical distance and other safe practices, each household should understand their full exposure. North Battleford Mayor Ryan Bater said communicating where group members have interacted with other people is a must before deciding to meet.

“If you haven’t seen someone in a while and you need to see them, make sure you know all their contacts,” said Bater. “To ensure that you’ll be able to trace everyone they’ve been in contact with.”

And while the wait is making many families anxious to reunite, Moe, who’s waiting to see family of his own, said the wait is worth it.

“I have a son that I haven’t seen for six weeks,” he said. “I’d love to have a barbecue with him.”

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josh.ryan@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JoshRyanSports