In early 2020, terms like Coronavirus, SARS-coV-2, and Covid-19 were not in the vocabulary of the general public. Little was known about the virus that was making the news across the globe, but it felt far away. Until it wasn’t.
In a matter of weeks, the NBA shut down, travel became restricted, businesses closed up shop, and schools began the longest March break in history. On March 17, 2020 the province declared a state of emergency.
Throughout the pandemic, Canadians have relied heavily on the government to provide updates and guidance on how to navigate their daily lives. The Minister of Health at this time was the Honourable Patty Hajdu. She had recently taken over the hefty portfolio in November 2019, and had a pandemic dropped on her desk shortly thereafter.
Acadia News’ morning reporter, Katie Nicholls, had the chance to speak with the minister about her experience leading in a pandemic, the very large task of keeping Canadians safe & informed, and looking back two years later, if she would’ve done anything differently.
