Atiba Nelson
Staff Reporter

 

ichelle became undone as she was handed the
laboratory result. Her eyes quickly scanned the single
sheet paper to find the information she anticipated:

“Positive. COVID-19 virus (2019-nCoV) detected by
NAT at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control
Public Health Laboratory.” Most healthcare interactions boil
down to one stranger meeting another stranger sprinkled
with small talk and a medical diagnosis. Yet during a
pandemic these interactions are unusually difficult.

As a registered nurse, Michelle Smith—a pseudonym—
is used to navigating the difficulty of healthcare provision
and the banalities of lab results. “Typically, lab results—
whether positive or negative—are shrugged off by most
healthcare workers. You read the result, check the name
to make sure it’s the right person, hand the paper to the

physician, then tell the patient that the doctor has their
results,” said Smith.

However, this one was different. This would be the
first time Michelle told a patient they had COVID-19.
Her supervisor instructed her to phone the patient at the
number in CareConnect, then go through the contact
tracing form. Smith stared at the three-page document
beside the phone. The paper read as a list of questions
covering a typical medical interview: age, gender,
occupation, date of symptom onset, travel history, other
medical comorbidities.

“Just phone the patient and relay the results, then
complete the questionnaire with them?” asked Smith
aloud into a room filled with other staff. Michelle received
a confirmatory head nod and then proceeded to dial
the number.Since hospital admissions are at record lows
and patient attendance to emergency departments are
dramatically down, Michelle has been seconded to the