For Immediate Release
Friday, April 28th, 2023 | 11:00 a.m. | Windsor and Essex County
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit has modified their masking and symptom screening policies, effective Monday, May 1, 2023.
Throughout the pandemic, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) has asked all staff and visitors to wear a mask while accessing our programs and services. With recent changes to COVID-19 guidance from Ontario’s Ministry of Health, along with the steady trends of declining infections in COVID-19 cases locally, the WECHU is updating our masking requirements and other infection prevention and control practices for all visitors and staff, effective Monday, May 1.
While it will be optional to wear a mask in WECHU offices, it remains strongly encouraged that visitors wear a mask when accessing direct client care services. WECHU staff will be required to wear a medical-grade mask in these same settings.
Throughout the pandemic when arriving at a WECHU office, visitors were actively screened for symptoms of COVID-19 by a member of the health unit staff. On May 1, visitors will not be actively screened for symptoms at reception. The WECHU continues to encourage members of our community to self-assess for symptoms each day by going to Ontario.ca/self-assessment and to stay home if they are feeling unwell to help prevent the spread of germs. If you have symptoms, or are unsure of the appropriate next steps, the online self-assessment tool can be utilized.
The WECHU is a mask-friendly environment. We continue to support members of our community who choose to wear a mask at any time, both in our offices and in other public settings, and encourage others to be accepting of such decisions.