COVID-19: As possible 'twindemic' approaches, Sask. docs urge mask use

The Saskatchewan Medical Association is urging people to wear masks in a new campaign. (Facebook)

SASKATOON — The Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA) urges mask use along with other safety measures people have taken to keep COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan relatively low.

“Wearing a mask is another tool each of us can use to keep one another safe,” SMA president Dr. Barb Konstantynowicz, a Regina family physician, said in a news release.

The SMA has unfurled banners across Second Avenue downtown and Broadway Avenue in Saskatoon as part of a campaign to promote mask use. The group emphasizes the importance of masks to the health of seniors, businesses, families and colleagues at work.

The approaching flu season, with the possibility of a so-called “twindemic,” concerns physicians, the SMA says.

“Vulnerable populations are at risk from the flu during a normal flu season,” Konstantynowicz said in the release. “We do not know how COVID-19 will affect the annual flu season.”

Other precautions include hand-washing, maintaining physical distancing, limiting contact with others and avoiding crowds.