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Source: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada...ampaign=National&utm_content=bccoviddataissue
As Whistler launches vaccination push, experts say B.C. has a COVID-19 data problem
By Douglas QuanVancouver Bureau
Mon., April 12, 2021timer6 min. read
updateArticle was updated 15 hrs ago
How did things in the picturesque mountain community of Whistler ? one of North America?s premiere ski destinations ? get so bad?
On Monday, facing the highest recorded rate of COVID-19 in British Columbia, the community began a push to vaccinate all residents and workers 18 and older.
The two-week effort to stamp out the latest, variant-fuelled outbreak there underscores what has been a struggle throughout the pandemic to keep the coronavirus at bay.
?Overall, the takeaway from Whistler is that resorts are great places for outbreaks and for distributing variants across the province and beyond,? says Jens von Bergmann, a data analyst and consultant in Vancouver.
Von Bergmann drew a comparison between Whistler and Ischgl, a ski resort in Austria cited for helping to spread the original COVID-19 strain across Europe.
?Public health gambled on this not happening at Whistler, and they lost that bet to the detriment of all of B.C. and beyond. And just like in Ischgl, public health did not act fast and decisively once variant spread was detected in Whistler, but waited until there was irrefutable evidence that it became a problem.?
Experts say there are likely a variety of factors at play for what has gone wrong in Whistler.
Part of it could be political, reflecting a desire to keep one of the community?s world-renowned skiing destinations open as long as possible. Another could be ?wishful thinking? and ?minimizing? the spread of COVID-19 variants in British Columbia.
Since the start of the year through to April 5, there have been 1,505 COVID-19 cases in Whistler ? the majority involving people between the ages of 20 and 39, according to Vancouver Coastal Health, the regional health authority that serves Whistler.
Variant cases appear to be a significant contributor to the spike in numbers.
B.C. has recorded 974 cases of the P.1 variant that originated in Brazil, the highest in Canada. Of those cases, there are at least 197 of the variant cases in the Whistler community.
?Currently, Howe Sound has the highest rate of COVID-19 of any local health area in the province; the majority of these cases reside in the Whistler community,? the health authority said in a news release Sunday, explaining why people in Whistler were being allowed to get their COVID-19 vaccinations earlier than those in other parts of the province...
...There is another layer to the Whistler situation, however, that experts say may have at least contributed to the current situation in the community and the province, which as a whole saw another 3,289 cases over the weekend.
Observers point to a paucity of publicly available information about how the pandemic has played out in Canada?s westernmost province ? the kind of information that can guide decision making during a health crisis and is readily available in Ontario.
?Unfortunately, B.C. has generally stood out as a jurisdiction that is particularly poor at data transparency. As one of the largest provinces, we?d expect them to be more sufficiently resourced to be able to provide those data,? said Jean-Paul Soucy, a University of Toronto PhD student in epidemiology and co-founder of the COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group...
As Whistler launches vaccination push, experts say B.C. has a COVID-19 data problem
By Douglas QuanVancouver Bureau
Mon., April 12, 2021timer6 min. read
updateArticle was updated 15 hrs ago
How did things in the picturesque mountain community of Whistler ? one of North America?s premiere ski destinations ? get so bad?
On Monday, facing the highest recorded rate of COVID-19 in British Columbia, the community began a push to vaccinate all residents and workers 18 and older.
The two-week effort to stamp out the latest, variant-fuelled outbreak there underscores what has been a struggle throughout the pandemic to keep the coronavirus at bay.
?Overall, the takeaway from Whistler is that resorts are great places for outbreaks and for distributing variants across the province and beyond,? says Jens von Bergmann, a data analyst and consultant in Vancouver.
Von Bergmann drew a comparison between Whistler and Ischgl, a ski resort in Austria cited for helping to spread the original COVID-19 strain across Europe.
?Public health gambled on this not happening at Whistler, and they lost that bet to the detriment of all of B.C. and beyond. And just like in Ischgl, public health did not act fast and decisively once variant spread was detected in Whistler, but waited until there was irrefutable evidence that it became a problem.?
Experts say there are likely a variety of factors at play for what has gone wrong in Whistler.
Part of it could be political, reflecting a desire to keep one of the community?s world-renowned skiing destinations open as long as possible. Another could be ?wishful thinking? and ?minimizing? the spread of COVID-19 variants in British Columbia.
Since the start of the year through to April 5, there have been 1,505 COVID-19 cases in Whistler ? the majority involving people between the ages of 20 and 39, according to Vancouver Coastal Health, the regional health authority that serves Whistler.
Variant cases appear to be a significant contributor to the spike in numbers.
B.C. has recorded 974 cases of the P.1 variant that originated in Brazil, the highest in Canada. Of those cases, there are at least 197 of the variant cases in the Whistler community.
?Currently, Howe Sound has the highest rate of COVID-19 of any local health area in the province; the majority of these cases reside in the Whistler community,? the health authority said in a news release Sunday, explaining why people in Whistler were being allowed to get their COVID-19 vaccinations earlier than those in other parts of the province...
...There is another layer to the Whistler situation, however, that experts say may have at least contributed to the current situation in the community and the province, which as a whole saw another 3,289 cases over the weekend.
Observers point to a paucity of publicly available information about how the pandemic has played out in Canada?s westernmost province ? the kind of information that can guide decision making during a health crisis and is readily available in Ontario.
?Unfortunately, B.C. has generally stood out as a jurisdiction that is particularly poor at data transparency. As one of the largest provinces, we?d expect them to be more sufficiently resourced to be able to provide those data,? said Jean-Paul Soucy, a University of Toronto PhD student in epidemiology and co-founder of the COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group...