Despite the palpable concern of the hospital network, the authorities seem to rely more on individual accountability than on collective repression to cross the wave raised by Omicron – a change of approach applauded by many.
“We will have to learn to live with the virus”, wrote on Facebook the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, on September 3. Tuesday, it was a “paradigm shift” he announced: soon, workers with COVID-19 could return to the floor, provided they are asymptomatic.
A tolerance to the virus that contrasts with the measures that were in force at the same date last year. On December 29, 2020, Quebec registered 2,381 new cases, non-essential businesses remained closed, and no indoor gatherings were allowed. Hospitals had 1,124 hospitalizations, including 150 in intensive care.
As of Wednesday, the coronavirus infected more than 13,000 Quebecers, and 804 people were in hospital, including 122 in intensive care. Despite the situation, six people can still meet indoors, restaurants can seat half of their capacity, and non-essential businesses have yet to limit their clientele.
“This change comes at the right time,” according to François Audet, director of the Montreal Institute of International Studies. “There is no such thing as a lasting crisis: as long as it lasts, it becomes the norm. “
According to this former humanitarian accustomed to political and social crises, it is obvious that the planet will not succeed in eradicating COVID in the short term. “We must now learn to live with it,” says the professor from the School of Management at UQAM.
“It’s counterintuitive to normalize outbreaks, hospitalizations and deaths,” concedes François Audet. However, the pandemic threat must “become internalized in the management of public life”.
There is no such thing as a lasting crisis: as long as it lasts, it becomes the norm
“It doesn’t mean to stop worrying and be vigilant,” he says. We must continue barrier gestures, continue to disinfect our hands and maintain distance. It is maintaining these new standards that will get us out of this situation. “
Since the Spanish flu
A century ago, there were few collective restrictions to stem the Spanish flu. “The answer was rather based on individual responsibility”, explains Denis Goulet, medical historian and author of Brief history of epidemics in Quebec. “For 21 months, it has been a unique period for the imposition of such severe measures. This is unprecedented in the modern history of Quebec. “
According to their studies, the people of 1918 voluntarily agreed to abide by the constraints imposed by municipal public health offices. “At the time, records show that parents often put children who did not take health precautions to order. For them, it was unacceptable that the recklessness of young people compromised public health. “
Even today, Denis Goulet believes that Quebecers can agree to restrict their individual freedom in the name of collective well-being.
“In certain cultures of social democratic obedience, it is a very conclusive approach, describes the historian. In the Scandinavian countries, for example, the common well-being takes precedence over personal freedoms. These are values instilled in children very early on. “
Quebec and its tradition of social democracy “are part of that culture, with collective programs such as health insurance,” adds Mr. Goulet. He notes, however, that an “Americanization” of Quebec society is increasingly shaking the social consensus of the past and that Uncle Sam-style individualism taints the relationship of Quebecers to the community.
A responsibility already acquired
Others, even within the hospital system, congratulate the government on empowering individuals.
“Me, I am very, very proud that the debate is shifting to the field of individual responsibilities,” said Dr.r Mathieu Simon on December 23, the day after the press conference during which the Prime Minister asked Quebeckers to limit their contacts to a minimum for the holiday season.
The head of the intensive care department of the University Institute of Cardiology and Pneumology of Quebec draws a parallel with the behavior of Quebecers in the face of other diseases. “If you have gastro, you don’t invite 12 people to the table to share a turkey […] We do not expect the Prime Minister and the Dr Arruda that they tell us what to do with infections which are more common. “
According to him, Quebecers understand that individualistic logic leads to a dead end.
“The way to do it is not to project yourself and say to yourself: ‘This is going to be a disaster.’ It is to say to yourself: “OK, I am a responsible citizen, I will think with my head and my heart, not only of my little personal freedom, but of how I can help preserve these freedoms so that ‘they don’t belong just to me, but to the whole community. ” “