By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Deaths have "shaken community"

Maskwacis continues to struggle with COVID-19 outbreak

Jan 11, 2021 | 9:45 AM

Maskwacis and its four First Nations – Samson, Ermineskin, Montana and Louis Bull – continues to be hit hard by COVID-19.

Randy Littlechild, CEO of Maskwacis Health Services, says though a state of local emergency has been in place since March, case numbers only began creeping up in late summer before spiking.

According to Alberta Health (as of Jan. 10) Maskwacis has 645 active cases and eight deaths, with over 2,100 cases to date.

Littlechild says the biggest hurdle facing the community of 18,000 is that upwards of 10 people could be living in any one residence, meaning when one case is confirmed, more are likely to follow.

“Our only hope is the vaccine and getting access to that, which the government says we’re supposed to as a priority nation. But we’re certainly not getting that very quickly,” he says.

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“They have a treaty obligation to provide it to us. There is a clause called the Medicine Chest Clause and it says in cases of famine and pestilence the government or Crown is supposed to provide aid for the First Nations. A pandemic is pestilence.”

Treaty 6, which includes Maskwacis, was the first treaty to include such a clause.

“You go get a test, but you’re not getting that result for sometimes one to three days. In the meantime, people end up spreading it because they’re not following the guidelines, be it here on the reserve, in town, or in Red Deer, for example,” Littlechild explains.

“When you get a test, you’re supposed to stay home and isolate. We are testing anybody who wants one. We’ve conducted over 19,000 tests since March, more so in the last three months, and we’re averaging 260 to 300 people per day.”

Littlechild recalls being told Maskwacis would be receiving vaccines the week of Jan. 14.

Alberta Health says individuals on First Nations reserves aged 65 and up are currently prioritized in Phase 1B of the province’s vaccination schedule slated for February. Maskwacis has close to 600 elders who would qualify.

However, local home care workers from Maskwacis have already accepted invitations to receive doses of the Pfizer vaccine in Red Deer and Camrose.

“I’m getting conflicting stories because the province distributes it out to different sites, so we’re stuck, we’re waiting,” laments Littlechild, estimating the inoculation of thousands could take three to four months.

RELATED: COVID-19 vaccine arrives in remote First Nations across Canada

“Even if we vaccinate people every single day, or hit a target of 400 per day, seven days a week, just do the math,” he says. “We then have to bring them back a month later. Even provincially, with a population of over four million people, with two doses, it’s going to be a monumental task.”

Alberta Health Services says it continues to meet regularly with Indigenous communities to support them through these difficult times.

“We have an excellent partnership with Maskwacis Health Services and are working closely with local health services, as well as government partners at all levels to support the pandemic response measures in Maskwacis,” a statement reads.

“The community has established dedicated isolation trailers to support their residents in self-isolating when they may be unable to do so appropriately at home. AHS has supported the addition of a fourth EMS crew in the community, and AHS Medical Affairs has been recruiting local physicians to help provide medical support to those in the isolation trailers.”

Littlechild acknowledges those supports have been very helpful.

“AHS Public Health is also supporting localized COVID-19 swabbing, helping enhance access,” the statement continues. “In the coming weeks, AHS Public Health is working closely with our partners in Maskwacis to plan for vaccine distribution. AHS is prepared to provide staffing supports to provide immunizations as needed in collaboration with Maskwacis Health Services and FNIH.”

In a Jan. 7 update, Indigenous Services Canada said there have been 9,968 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in First Nations communities nationwide, 3,288 of which were active. There have been 95 deaths.

Littlechild says the eight COVID-19 deaths that have occurred in Maskwacis – including two people in their 20s — have shaken the community.

“You’d figure that when you release that information, young people out there would say ‘Hey, I think this is real now and I better be careful.’ When I look around they are wearing masks,” Littlechild says, though there’s no mandatory mask bylaw similar to other communities in Alberta.

“What happens when it gets dark? People go home, we’ve had situations with parties, we’ve had funerals and wakes which we take very seriously, and we’ve had to put strict rules in place on those.”

He adds that all Albertans need to take greater responsibility for their actions if we’re going to minimize the harm done by COVID-19.

“Back in the spring, if you ever drove down the QEII, there was very little traffic,” he says. “Go on that highway now, and even with all the restrictions, there’s a tremendous amount of traffic. Where are people going?”