2 years in, COVID-19 has highlighted 'how special this community is,' Waterloo region officials say

Saturday marks the two-year anniversary of the first COVID-19 case being announced in Waterloo region.

For Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, the memory of that day is a distant one.

"It feels like it's been longer than that, hasn't it?" she said Friday in an interview on CBC Kitchener-Waterloo's The Morning Edition with host Craig Norris. "We knew so much less about the virus back then."

But the region is in a "stronger position" now, Wang said.

"I do think that the situation is improving," she said, noting local COVID-19 trends are slowing or plateauing.

And in a media briefing Friday morning, she said she's feeling "really proud and grateful" to the community.

"So many people in our community have quietly stepped up and done the things that were asked of them, even though it's been very difficult for them, including our businesses," she said.

"I'm really glad to see the life come back to our community, to our businesses and people starting to enjoy more of what life in this community has to offer."

Lessons learned

The Omicron wave of COVID-19 has receded, restrictions have been lifted and this week, Ontario's chief medical officer of health Dr. Keiran Moore said the mask mandate could be gone at the end of the month.

These are all positive signs, Wang says, noting people now have the "tools now to help protect us against the worst outcomes."

But lessons on how to curb the spread of the virus aren't the only ones officials in Waterloo region will take forward from the last two years.

Regional Chair Karen Redman said she's most aware of the gains the region has made "through necessity" such as collaborating with various agencies and other level of governments and improving digital services.

"I think we're all tired of hearing the word pivot, but we have been more flexible, more, not reactive, but adaptive during this pandemic. And I really hope that from the regional perspective that we don't lose that," Redman said in the media briefing Friday.

Health care collaboration

Regional chief administrative officer Bruce Lauckner agreed. He previously worked for Ontario Health and the Local Health Integration Networks and said he's "never seen collaboration to this level."

He said local businesses stepped up to help. He saw health care agencies work together like they hadn't before. Even the Kitchener Rangers took it upon themselves to encourage people to get vaccinated

"We really showed how special this community is in terms of everybody coming together," he said.

David Aoki, the director of infectious diseases for Region of Waterloo Public Health, agreed. He said often health care agencies work, not necessarily in silos, but "in buckets."

Aoki has worked in public health for nearly 20 years and said "this has been the most broad scale coming together of a health system" he's seen.

"We're at a point now where we can reopen because of those partnerships," he said.

Advocacy for local businesses

Local businesses in Waterloo region also made big changes, many moving to online platforms to continue to serve customers during lockdowns, said Tracy Van Kalsbeek, executive director of the Uptown Waterloo Business Improvement Area (BIA).

But the other change she has noticed is that other levels of government are turning to the BIA to understand what small businesses need to survive and thrive after the pandemic.

"We're getting requests from ministers to talk to them about what's going on, how has the pandemic impacted small business? And so that's a position that we didn't have so much before, but we're now the go-to and the ear for small business," she said during Friday's briefing.

"The amount of advocacy that we've done locally, but also provincially and federally, has been amazing."

People need time to recover

While there are highlights and lessons to be taken forward, Lauckner noted there are still people who are in pain from the past two years and that won't go away with the lifting of mandates.

"I don't know anyone who hasn't suffered mentally from this," he said. "I think that our community spirit will help us through ... and we will need recovery in the coming months and years."

Wang also noted people need to remember that as mandates are lifted, COVID remains a threat. She urged people not yet fully vaccinated to get their two shots and the booster. She also reminded people that it's OK to go slow and take a cautious approach to restarting activities.

"I do expect there will be periods of increases and decreases going forward," Wang said of COVID-19 cases.

And when COVID-19 case numbers go up, the public will hear from her.

"Even though it may not be what people want to hear, I will continue to keep people informed about what the risks may be," she said.