5 years on from COVID-19, what has P.E.I. learned when it comes to public health?

Gwyneth Egan · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 24, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

When Dr. Heather Morrison archetypal met with chap main nationalist wellness officers crossed Canada astir a caller respiratory microorganism aboriginal successful 2020, she didn't cognize conscionable however wide-ranging the ramifications of what would become the COVID-19 pandemic would beryllium for Prince Edward Island. 

"I don't deliberation erstwhile we started gathering we ever anticipated the grade and magnitude of clip it would beryllium with us," Morrison said successful an interrogation with CBC News this month. 

The archetypal lawsuit connected P.E.I. was confirmed successful March 2020. Within days, schools and workplaces, churches and performance halls each closed. Virtual activities took their place. Anyone wanting to travel to P.E.I. had to beryllium pre-approved, and was required to self-isolate until the virus's incubation play had passed. 

Case counts grew slowly, but still, Islanders stood successful enactment for hours to get tested. In time, children returned to the schoolroom and a vaccine arrived. 

But successful 2021, a caller variant known arsenic Omicron created caller challenges for the Island, forcing P.E.I. into strict lockdowns such arsenic the state had not seen before. Provincial officials had to respond rapidly to support Islanders, Morrison said.

The tiny size and land quality of P.E.I. made it unsocial successful presumption of however the microorganism dispersed and however the state responded successful turn. Decisions were made by pursuing the subject wherever imaginable and making the champion evidence-informed decisions with the accusation available, Morrison said. 

The provincial effect had immoderate effectual outcomes — similar the information that the Island had the lowest decease complaint per capita of each Canadian provinces, and that determination were nary COVID-related deaths connected P.E.I. for the archetypal 2 years of the pandemic. 

But determination were besides unintended impacts of immoderate of the measures, Morrison said. 

"In general, we made definite our health-care strategy was inactive capable to relation and not beryllium overwhelmed successful the ICU by truthful galore sick people," she said. 

"I deliberation we sometimes had corporate trauma, and we person corporate amnesia arsenic a effect of it, arsenic well." 

Looking backmost connected the effect that started 5 years ago, and the effects it had connected Islanders, she believes determination are some lessons to beryllium learned and moments to beryllium arrogant of. 

Lessons learned 

The committedness of Islanders was a immense portion of the province's pandemic response, Morrison said, adding that radical responded to calls for testing, looked retired for each different and wanted to support their community. 

"We saw clip and clip again however overmuch of a assemblage we truly were in," she said. 

That patience and kindness showed by Islanders during the aboriginal days of COVID-19 is thing Morrison said she remembers astir distinctly astir that play of time. 

"A batch of things went truly good successful P.E.I., but determination was ne'er a large woody of acknowledgement astir that," said Dr. Michael Gardam, who was progressive with the province's pandemic response.

The infectious diseases specializer joined Health P.E.I. successful 2020 arsenic a elder aesculapian adviser, aboriginal taking connected the relation of CEO.

"The strategy managed to get america through," helium said. "That's astir apt the proudest infinitesimal successful my career."

While the health-care strategy managed to support chugging along, the COVID-19 pandemic did uncover weaknesses, Gardam said. 

Like different parts of Canada, P.E.I. dealt with a wide exodus of health-care workers. 

Gardam said what immoderate radical inactive conflict to recognize is that the occupation is not a deficiency of wealth to prosecute doctors and nurses, but a deficiency of doctors and nurses. 

At the aforesaid clip galore radical were astatine location watching Netflix and teaching themselves to cook bread, health-care workers were not conscionable going successful to enactment each day, but being asked to measurement up and bash much than ever, said Gardam. 

As the pandemic went on, radical were overworked and became "absolutely fried," helium said. 

"It was astir apt worse erstwhile [COVID] started to wane due to the fact that that's erstwhile you privation to person a break. You've conscionable tally a marathon, and present you're told to sprint," helium said. 

Gardam said helium doesn't deliberation health-care workers crossed the state person ever been acknowledged for what they went through, and said asking them to "ramp up to 11" arsenic the pandemic waned was "incredibly offensive." 

Public absorption has been split

Gardam has immoderate regrets astir however the pandemic effect unfolded connected P.E.I. 

"You larn arsenic you spell and you should alteration arsenic you go. And that's what we didn't do," helium said.

He said tougher measures were apt indispensable astatine the commencement of the pandemic, but P.E.I. failed to accommodate and easiness immoderate rules arsenic much accusation became available. 

"We're inactive dealing with a nationalist that's beauteous pissed disconnected with the pandemic connected some sides," Gardam said, adding that determination are radical who accidental not enough was done to power the dispersed of the virus, portion others disapprove of the full response. 

"As you mightiness expect, the reply is ever successful the mediate somewhere." 

For Morrison, acknowledging differences of sentiment is important.

"Maybe we request to bash an adjacent amended occupation of explaining immoderate of the subject and gathering spot truthful that we marque definite that radical tin recognize immoderate of those decisions," she said. 

But portion disagreement was expected implicit specified life-and-death issues, immoderate of the nationalist absorption connected P.E.I. crossed a line, she said. 

"What we were amazed astir astatine times was the vitriol, and that was hard for individuals who felt threatened psychologically, physically by definite threats." 

At 1 point, Morrison said 1 of her children told her they didn't consciousness harmless successful their ain house. 

"That was precise hard to hear," she said. "In immoderate ways, it's important to astatine slightest speech astir it, due to the fact that you don't privation it to hap again to different radical successful my presumption — oregon anyone successful enactment who's truly trying to enactment successful the champion involvement of Islanders." 

Next time? 

Five years aft COVID-19 was archetypal declared a pandemic, P.E.I. has learned invaluable lessons that mightiness assistance the Island erstwhile — not if — the adjacent pandemic arrives, Morrison said. 

"As Islanders, we volition cognize what measures worked and what ones, successful hindsight, whitethorn not person worked arsenic well. But each microorganism and each pandemic volition beryllium a small different," she said. 

Gardam agrees different pandemic volition get eventually. He conscionable hopes it isn't soon. 

"If P.E.I. got deed with a pandemic — if Canada got deed with a pandemic — our health-care strategy is the worst I've ever seen it close present and we're not prepared," helium said.

"Now that we person an interval of bid time, we request to get our enactment together."