Why don’t we know more about a ‘basketball club’ outbreak in Hamilton?

They could be players, spectators, parents or fans. They could be a school team, prep team, pickup team or anything that could be a basketball team." They could have contracted COVID by playing basketball, hanging out or some other close contact."

Whatever the case, infectious disease experts and an ethicist say that by withholding information about a local basketball club's COVID outbreak, public health is hindering Hamiltonians' ability to make informed decisions about risk assessment.

The outbreak in question involves a Hamilton-based basketball club." Six patrons" have tested positive for COVID. Public health declared the outbreak Oct. 21, when four people tested positive, saying there was no risk to the public" and no further information - including if those sick are players or not - would be released due to privacy reasons."

That refusal to disclose information does the public a disservice, says Arthur Schafer, founding director of the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba.

I think privacy is an important value and an important concern but I think the value of public health trumps the value of privacy," Schafer said. Releasing name of the team and explaining how it came to be spread ... will potentially save a lot of other people from becoming infected."

He added that when minimal information is released, speculation will run rampant."

Public health, in some ways, agrees.

It is important for the public to know as much as possible about COVID-19 and its transmission and impacts to individuals as well as the community as a whole," said public health spokesperson Jacqueline Durlov in an email.

But public health must also balance individuals' privacy with the public's need to know, she said.

The public is left with far more questions than answers when it comes to this specific outbreak.

For instance, in every other outbreak, public health has named the setting, association or business - though public health argues it did name the setting by calling it Hamilton basketball club." It is not known if the six infected people are players," though it seems they are not staff," as the cases are listed in public health's total resident/patient/patron cases" column online, as opposed to the staff" one. The cases involve close contact" though public health wouldn't specify if transmission occurred in a sports or residential setting, though it did note it's not possible to say exactly which activities," such as socializing or training, led to spread.

Asked to elaborate on what a basketball club is, public health said: It could include anything that is a basketball team."

Durlov said releasing more information risks identifying someone. We follow the rules as set out under the Personal Health Information Protection Act," she said.

The mystery of the basketball club outbreak comes at a time all eyes are on fitness centres and sports teams.

SpinCo, a superspreader outbreak which hit 85 cases last week despite the Hamilton studio following all public health advice, prompted provincial officials to re-evaluate gym guidelines. A Burlington old-timers hockey club suspended its season this month after a number" of players tested positive. Gyms and fitness centres in hot spot regions Ottawa, Toronto, Peel and York all remain shuttered in an effort to limit spread.

Learning from past cases stops us from chasing our tail," and making the same mistakes twice, said Dr. Zain Chagla, an infectious disease physician at St. Joseph's Healthcare.

While it's less important to know the identifying information of those who are sick, it is important to know if they got sick while wearing masks or not, while physical distancing or not, or while playing a sport or having beers after a game.

Even if it is happening extracurricular to the sport, with socialization, that's still important information ... (because) the socialization before and after the sport probably needs to be (cracked down on)," he said. That's still a teachable moment."

It's not clear what lessons Hamilton public health might be learning.

Public health staff are working with the group to look at where those opportunities for transmission were and whether anything can be improved," she said of the basketball team. This is not unique to this group."

Durlov said public health analyzes information gleaned from outbreaks, which then informs policy.

But to get the public on board with policy changes, you need to keep them in the loop, said Colin Furness, an infection control epidemiologist at the University of Toronto.

We could build more public literacy, as well as supporting smart government decision-making, by disclosing," Furness said.

For instance, after the SpinCo outbreak, Hamilton public health changed guidance on mask-wearing during high-intensity workouts. Lesson learned, policy changed, public - arguably - on board.

As for the need to name settings or businesses, that's important because it makes COVID spread more real," Furness said. He disagrees vehemently" with public health's refusal to provide non-identifying information, such as if the cases are in players.

The more we know, the better equipped we are to make decisions about our own health, he said.

Everything we know about COVID spread ... is from case reports, is from public health units that are doing ... well, I almost want to say a more conscientious job in terms of disclosing," he said. That (way) everyone is smarter."

Katrina Clarke is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: katrinaclarke@thespec.com