B.C. will be safe-distancing and hand-washing for months to come, Dr. Bonnie Henry says

As the number of new COVID-19 cases slows, there’s more discussion about what easing B.C.’s lockdown will look like.

“The basics – the hand hygiene, the safe distancing, making sure that our workplaces are able to have the hand cleaning, the safe distancing, the working from home – those are things that are not going to change for awhile,” Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said April 13, in response to a question about the matter.

“Those are things we’re going to have to be continuously thinking about doing for the next coming months, until we have enough herd immunity that we’re not going to get a dramatic increase and rapidly increasing infections in our community.

There are a number of elements that go into a recovery plan.

In part, it’s looking at what’s happening in neighbouring provinces and states, as well as around the world.

It’s also looking closely at what’s happening in all areas of B.C., where the outbreaks are, and at what resources are in place to detect future outbreaks.

There will be two primary aspects to a recovery plan.

One involves getting the economy going again.

The other will focus on making sure the health care system is prepared to cope with a surge in COVID-19 cases without compromising the rest of the health care system, Henry said.

There will be a detailed briefing on the subject Friday morning.

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