COVID-19 Vaccines and the Outdoors Make Thanksgiving Safe: MLHU – London | The Canadian News

Canadians are gearing up for their second Thanksgiving amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but before anyone pulls out the pumpkin turkey pie, the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) asks people to keep a few things in mind.

MLHU Medical Health Officer Dr. Chris Mackie says the most important step in reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19 at any Thanksgiving gathering is to vaccinate as many people as possible.

“Equally important is having the meetings outdoors. Going outside is about 20 times safer than gathering indoors, which is on par with vaccination, “Mackie said during a news conference Thursday.

“So if you are outdoors and you are vaccinated, you have a very low risk. Anyone who is not vaccinated should try to avoid gathering indoors. “

More guidance on celebrating a safe Thanksgiving can be found on the MLHU website. Guidance is provided at a list of collection options ranked from “most secure” to “least secure”.

The safest option includes celebrating with your family and inviting guests to join in virtually.

A cautious option includes small outdoor gatherings where everyone is vaccinated.

MLHU advises taking extra steps with this option, such as having guests bring their own meals so no one has to share or having one person serve the food. People are also advised to stay away from people outside their home or to wear masks if there is no room to distance themselves.

The MLHU considers large gatherings, both indoors and outdoors, to be the least safe option. Under this option, health officials advise against meeting people who are not vaccinated or inviting large numbers of people into their home.

Sharing or drinking food is also discouraged, as well as hosting large gatherings that lack physical distancing.

Thanksgiving last year raised concerns about higher education students traveling home before bringing an infection to London, but Mackie says things are different now that vaccines are here.

In addition to high vaccine acceptance among students, driven in part by vaccine policies at Fanshawe College and Western University, the medical health officer says Ontario is no longer dealing with COVID-19 hot spots like it did in 2020.

“International travel is another story, we still have travel advisories from the federal government (for) anywhere outside of Canada and in particular the US border is still closed, so it is not recommended,” Mackie said.

“Travel to Ontario to see your family. Again, if you can keep the meetings outdoors, particularly when multiple generations are involved, that will help keep things even safer. “

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