Check against delivery

I want to echo the Premier’s comments that we all need to follow the advice and direction of the Chief Public Health Officer.

She is an expert in protecting public health and the decisions she is making are going to protect NWT residents in both large and small communities.

I understand that people are very concerned about their health and safety. The GNWT is very concerned too. That is why we have taken the steps we have to protect residents over the past three weeks.

And although we have seen an increase in COVID cases this week, we can’t forget this important fact: that the measures to protect all our communities worked.  

All four individuals isolated at home and followed the direction of our Chief Public Health Officer.

Because of this, we were able to make sure the communities were not put at risk and contact was minimal.

The plans we made to treat individuals with COVID-19 were put into action and we were able to offer testing and treatment that met the needs of each individual, safely -- without creating risk for the communities or anybody in them.

What we’ve seen across the globe is that this virus doesn’t care who you are, or where you’re from. It doesn’t know town limits, and it doesn’t know boundaries.

For that reason, if we’re acting differently simply because a virus is in a particular community, we are not doing our job properly.

The only way we can slow the spread is by getting ahead of it. And the only way we get ahead of it, is by acting like we all have it, and changing our behaviours 100 percent of the time.

We all need to support the work of Dr. Kandola and follow her direction. Her advice is for everybody. It is not just for sick people and it is not just for communities where we know the virus is.

The only way we can slow the spread of this virus and protect our families and communities is for everybody to do what the Chief Public Health Officer says. Stop social gatherings, don’t go anywhere you don’t need to, practice social distancing at all time, wash your hands frequently, and follow healthy respiratory practices. These are the best tools we have to protect ourselves, our families and our communities.

I can’t stress this enough -- we all have to do this. We can’t be lazy about it and we can’t cut corners because we haven’t heard about cases in our communities. These are rules for everybody. These are the rules that will keep us safe.

So we must be courageous. We must trust our medical professionals. We must be kind and compassionate toward each other. And most importantly, we must work together to slow the spread of this virus.