Here we go again, round five of the pandemic

The Omicron variant is the latest curve ball thrown our way by the pandemic.

The last 22 months have been an emotional roller coaster for many Canadians and data suggest that our mental health has ebbed and flowed with each succeeding wave of the pandemic. For example, 28% of Canadians said their mental health was somewhat worse or much worse than before the pandemic when we asked them from June to August 2021. This was down from 42% during the height of the third wave of the pandemic in spring 2021.

Omicron appears to be the most transmissible COVID-19 variant so far, and case counts are at record highs across most of Canada. While morale may be flagging again, our data show that the overwhelming majority of Canadians report having done their part to keep others safe.

Virtually all Canadians (99%) wore a mask in public where physical distancing was difficult during the third wave in spring 2021, and 95% washed their hands more frequently.

Over 30.3 million Canadians (97%) kept a two-metre distance from others during the third wave of the pandemic in spring 2021, 96% avoided crowds or large gatherings, while over four in five Canadians (83%) avoided leaving their home for non-essential reasons.

Over one-quarter of Canadians (28%) worked from home last spring as a precaution, about four-fifths (79%) self-isolated if they had symptoms, and over one-third (37%) had been tested for COVID-19.

And finally, 95% of Canadians told us they were very likely or somewhat likely to get the COVID-19 vaccine when we asked in summer 2021, up from 76% in the late summer of 2020.