Peel Region’s top doctor is assuring residents that the region is currently experiencing a different scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to Toronto, but if residents aren’t cautious the situation could quickly escalate.

At a COVID-19 news briefing in Brampton on Wednesday morning, Peel’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Lawrence Loh said Peel is seeing cases spread among workplaces, home and social settings compared to restaurants and fitness facilities in Toronto.

“Colleagues in Toronto have recently reported a resurgence driven by numerous community outbreaks linked to restaurants, bars and gyms. The picture in Peel is different and that is because our community and our interactions are different,” Loh said at the news conference.

In Peel and particularly Brampton, Loh said “ socializing appears to be less bar hopping and more get-togethers at home.” He also noted that the region has more homes with a higher number of family members compared to Toronto.

“It is this cycle between workplaces, homes and social settings that have kept our case count links to known exposure but have also kept them consistently high,” Loh said.

Workplaces continue to be a hotbed for spreading the virus in Peel, Loh said, as many workers are forced to go into work as they don’t have the option to work from home.

“Employment also drives disparity for many of our residents who often work in places that are not open to the public and where if precautions are not taken these jobs that cannot be done from home can lead to spread. Think factory, warehouses, distribution centres,” he said.

To prevent outbreaks at workplaces, Loh said he has asked the Ministry of Labour to start workplace inspection blitzes. He said he has also asked for a federally-funded isolation centre to help those who need a place to safely self-isolate away from their family.

On Wednesday, provincial health officials reported 70 new cases of the virus in Peel, 90 new cases on Tuesday and 88 on Monday.

As of Tuesday, Peel Public Health said Brampton accounted for more than 57 per cent of the total cases in Peel, while over 38 per cent were from Mississauga and almost three per cent from Caledon.

A total of 330 people have died from the virus in Peel throughout the pandemic.

Loh’s counterpart in Toronto Dr. Eillen de Villa has called for the provincial government to close indoor dining and fitness facilities in the city to reduce the spread of the virus but Loh has not mimicked the same concerns.

He has however asked the province to reduce gathering limits which currently stands at 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors.

“I have requested that the province consider instituting a lower consistent gathering limit across all settings and consider providing financial assistance for banquet halls and event venues to furlough,” Loh said.

Contact tracing continues in Peel Region

Loh noted that the region is continuing with contact tracing, unlike Toronto Public Health which has recently paused the practice for close contacts of confirmed cases outside of outbreaks in congregate settings like schools, long-term care homes and hospitals.

Last week, de Villa described the decision as a “temporary measure in response to very high case counts.”

Loh said “there are no changes that are anticipated at this time” with contact tracing in Peel.

“But we’re always discussing and there may be some changes to come out sooner rather than later. But with that said, the focus is really on making sure that we are targeting high-risk contacts to ensure that we are stopping spread in our community,” he said.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown added processing more tests continues to be a priority in the city as many residents have been experiencing delays in getting their results.

“I highlighted to both the prime minister and the premier my concern over testing, that we have wait times that are too long and that the time to get test results back is too long. They’re both aware of it and they both told me they’re working to address it,” Brown said at the news conference

Loh said the region’s current testing backlog “ranges anywhere from 50 to about 100” tests within a 24-hour period.

Thanksgiving, Diwali should be limited to your household

As Thanksgiving and Diwali are soon approaching, Loh is urging residents to “limit any celebrations to your immediate household and your essential supports.”

“Our transmission rates remain high which means Toronto and Ottawa’s broader community spread picture could very quickly become ours if we are not cautious,” Loh added.

In addition, with Halloween soon approaching, Loh said a Halloween task force has been set up to determine if children can safely go trick-or-treating in the region, and those results are expected to be released soon.

Premier Doug Ford commented on Thanksgiving gatherings at his daily COVID-19 briefing on Tuesday and first suggested that he planned to limit dinner at his home to 10 people, which would go against advice from Ontario’s Associate Medical Officer of Health and de Villa for people to mark the occasion with only members of their immediate household.

Ford seemed to change his tune when he was pressed about his messaging later in the news conference and urged for residents to “stick within your household.”