The risk of COVID-19 in the territory is low, with no cases confirmed, but the Yukon’s chief medical officers say there is a multi-tier pandemic plan if that changes.

“Even though we are in uncharted territory, this is also completely manageable –– when you get on the ground, it’s not actually that scary,” Brendan Hanley, the Yukon’s chief medical officer, said this morning.

A media briefing on the virus took place this morning at which Hanley answered questions alongside Catherine Elliott, the deputy chief medical officer, and Pauline Frost, the minister of Health.

Elliott said “scores” of COVID-19 tests are being conducted in the Yukon daily.

Testing began about two weeks ago, with a surge in tests last week.

She clarified that the number of tests hovers between 10 and 100. She said the testing criteria were expanded to include anyone with flu symptoms, as a precautionary measure.

The rising number of tests was impacted by last Saturday’s cancellation of the Arctic Winter Games last weekend, which many Yukoners took as a signal for concern, Elliott said.

COVID-19 infection is evaluated with a regular respiratory tract illness test kit.

Only a handful of laboratories in Canada are able to test the kits for the coronavirus, so kits in the Yukon are sent to a lab in Vancouver with a turnaround time of three to five days. 

The turnaround time is dependent on whether a weekend falls between testing days, and test results are communicated electronically to Yukon health officials.

Elliott said the Yukon has a sufficient number of test kits at this time, and will work with other jurisdictions to procure medical equipment as necessary.

Yukoners who have recently travelled to Italy, Iran and the Chinese province of Hubei are asked to self-isolate without experiencing symptoms. Those who have travelled internationally to other places should wait to experience symptoms before self-isolating.

Yukoners who believe they have symptoms of the virus (cough, fever, shortness of breath) or believe they’ve been exposed to the virus should call 8-1-1.

A health care provider will conduct a test in the person’s home and ask that they self-isolate while waiting for results.

If the test is positive, health care officials will keep in contact with the patient until the disease has subsided to ensure all is well before re-entering society.

It was clarified that the transmission of COVID-19 is not airborne transmission, but resembles influenza, which can be caught through the spread of personal fluids.

Hanley said the Yukon is prepared to handle a confirmed case of COVID-19, in the likely case that it eventually happens, and “the sky will not fall down.”

Elliott added that residents shouldn’t worry, and managing the virus is “the bread and butter of public health.”

The public’s reaction to the discovery of a case in the Yukon is the largest point of concern for health officials, Elliott said.

She said it will be important to channel concern into constructive reactions, like personal health measures.

She said it’s important the territory take a “Team Yukon” approach and band together without panicking.

The public will be alerted if a case of COVID-19 is found in the Yukon. Health officials cannot publicize where in the territory the case is found, due to privacy rules.

Hanley said the Yukon has a pandemic plan, should it be necessary, with levels of response corresponding with the severity of the situation.

The key to a pandemic plan is enabling society to continue, as much as possible, in a business-as-usual manner.

Right now, the Yukon is focused on surveillance and frequent testing with a low threshold for test requirements.

If several cases are found, officials will move to containment procedures. The third level of response will address community spread of the virus in terms of hospital capacity and alternative care facilities.

“It’s a measured response, according to the need,” Hanley said.

He said the closure of highways and airports is unlikely. 

“The reflex closing of borders, to me, speak more to a paranoia for the most part than a rational public health-based decision,” Hanley said.

Hanley and Elliott noted that though the situation is manageable, it is serious due to its scale and unpredictability.

Hanley pegged the virus somewhere between SARS and influenza. It’s less transmissible than the flu, but more severe. It’s more transmissible than SARS, but less severe.

The Yukon is unique in its response because it’s a small place with one large centre. Elliott said it’s important to be cautious of importing cases to small communities with lower capacities for care.

Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Ranj Pillai went into self-isolation on Wednesday.

Pillai attended the annual convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada last week in Toronto. A participant at the convention from Sudbury, Ont., tested positive this week for COVID-19.

The regional medical health officer for Sudbury has determined through her investigation that the Sudbury man was most likely infected with the virus while he was at the convention. The PDAC convention is one of, if not the world’s largest, mining conventions with more than

Some 25,000 participants attending every year from around the globe. 

Cabinet spokesman Matthew Cameron said Wednesday afternoon that Pillai is being tested for COVID-19.

There were approximately 16 Yukon government staffers at the convention, as well as a few dozen others from the Yukon, he pointed out.

Cameron said none of the government employees are in self-isolation but are following the advice of the Yukon’s chief medical officer to self-monitor and take precautionary measures like washing their hands frequently.

Executive director Samson Hartland of the Yukon Chamber of Mines attended the convention but was unavailable for comment as he is out of the office this week on vacation.

By Gabrielle Plonka
and Chuck Tobiin