'A historic moment': Saskatoon historian developing COVID-19 archive
A lot has changed since Saskatchewan reported its first case of COVID-19 two years ago, with wearing masks, limiting in-person contacts and doing rapid tests quickly becoming the new normal.
It has been especially interesting for historians like Erika Dyck.
“We’ve been searching for answers about the future by looking at the past. How did the Spanish Flu play out here? How did Cholera play out in other places?” said Dyck, who is a history professor and Canada Research Chair at the University of Saskatchewan.
Dyck is part of a team that is developing a COVID-19 archive in Saskatchewan.
It captures voluntary responses about life during COVID from the time the first presumptive positive case was detected in the province on March 12, 2020.
Dyck said the archive reflects the resiliency of Saskatchewan people and the creative ways they have coped and connected with others throughout the pandemic.
“This is a historic moment right in front of us and we want to be careful and sort of conscious of how we memorialize this and what lessons we might offer future generations,” she said.
With changing public health orders and restrictions, Dyck said there has also been more division now than ever.
“People are frustrated, they’re tired, they’re exhausted from being in this fight or flight position."
Dr. Cory Neudorf, interim medical health officer with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, said the unprecedented spread of disinformation is also to blame as it makes people more reluctant to follow public health advice.
He said it’s important to learn from this as we move forward.
Neudorf adds that it’s crucial for there to be risk assessment tools available to the public and more support for the healthcare system.
“We’ve been operating very, very close to the margin in an effort to get a very efficient system but that leaves very little margin for surges that can happen for a variety of reasons,” he said.
Neudorf said it’s also important to recognize the positive steps that have been made such as developing vaccines faster than any other time in history.
He said the pandemic isn’t just “a flash in the pan” and people will need to learn how to continue living with COVID-19 for the foreseeable future.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.