Northern Health – COVID who cares?

 

To the Editor

 

It took me a number of days of living with a heavy heart, before I decided I better share my story. I read your article about how the teacher in Terrace was frustrated by the galling lack of concern Northern Health or for that matter its boss Bonnie Henry have privately vs what they pretend to have publicly.

 

I live and work in Smithers, my boss employs about 20 people in the hotel/restaurant industry. I do not want to identify them for fear of  ramifications to my fellow workers or to the business itself. What they did wrong pales in comparison to what Northern Health is doing.

 

About a week ago my supervisor mentioned that one of the co-workers had tested positive to COVID 19, as you can imagine hearing this was quite a frightening experience, but not as frightening as what followed. The manager did not bother to tell any of the employees till almost a week after the positive outcome, and left it to the grapevines for the news to travel.

 

The customers in Smithers are still completely oblivious to knowing they too were in contact with this person, who did the right thing by self isolation once that person tested positive.

 

I wanted to do the right thing, to protect the people I am in contact with so I phoned the Northern Health Virtual Clinic as per what we are instructed to do. They wanted all my personal information first, except not by mistake, by intent, who was my employer.

 

I was stunned, they did not want to know who my employer was or who I am in contact with, they said not to worry about anything at all unless I develop symptoms, then and only then should I call them again.

 

So for all of the public using our service industry, unless you get symptoms, Northern Health could not care less if the employees have COVID. What a joke.

 

Contact tracing, none of my fellow workers were contacted by Northern Health in spite of a positive case, the only concern they had was were all you wearing your masks, if yes, you have nothing to worry about. The only issue they care about is you wearing your masks, its like a condom you cannot get pregnant if you wear a mask.

 

Then I read the NDP are using Bonnie Henry to shut down industry because there are concerned about the spread of COVID?

 

The question I now have is when my coworker tested positive, did they even ask where this person works, and if they did, why is nobody acting to stop the spread of what THEY call a deadly disease.

 

My experience was very educational, these people in public claim to care COVID so much people are getting arrested for it in private homes, yet in the service industry they could not care less.

 

So COVID must be a political tool, clearly they do not care about our health.