The Chief Medical Health Officer of Saskatchewan, Dr. Saqib Shahab, is again urging residents of the province to follow the public health orders put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The call comes as the province reached new highs in terms of seven-day averages of new cases, and received the dubious distinction of having the most cases per capita in the country.

Thursday afternoon, it was announced there were 312 new cases of COVID-19 in the province, and the seven-day average was 313. The news came just two days after it was announced the province would be extending the public health orders announced in December to curb the spread of COVID-19. These measures include limiting private gatherings to the household only, limits on outdoor gatherings, capacity restrictions for retail stores and more.

“If we continue to see cases as high as this week, you know, I will be speaking to the Minister of Health, Mr. Merriman, about additional measures which may be required next week,” Dr. Shahab said during a press conference Thursday afternoon.

Shahab said there is a chance for numbers to come back down as they did if people follow the measures the province has introduced.

“Do everything that we were doing in December,” Dr. Shahab urged. “Reduce our movements, stay home as much as possible, take all precautions like wearing our masks when outdoors, staying home if you even have mild symptoms.”

While the province has had some successes with the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines, Shahab points out it could be a little bit longer until we start to see the effects of the vaccines on the numbers of new cases. As of Thursday, there had been just under 12,000 doses of the vaccines administered in the province, primarily in Regina and Saskatoon.

The province announced Tuesday they would be bringing the Moderna vaccine to southeast Saskatchewan, including Weyburn. The plan is for the vaccine to be administered to long term and personal care home staff and residents, as well as health care workers in the city.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority had declared two outbreaks in Weyburn at the end of December. One was in the South Wing of the Weyburn Special Care Home on December 27th, and the other was at the Weyburn General Hospital on December 29th. The outbreak at the Special Care Home was extended to include the North Wing last Friday.