LAKELAND - Alberta Health Services confirmed it is reviewing the online map that allows Albertans to see where COVID cases have been confirmed.
The map is organized according to an internal mapping system used by AHS, said spokesperson Tom McMillan.
"This is a well-established system and the naming convention has been in place for some time," he explained.
But, as Dr. Deena Hinshaw noted on Aug. 10 during a provincial update, the system wasn’t created with a real-time map and a pandemic in mind.
"This has led to some confusion about the area names," admits McMillan. "Our officials are reviewing the map and will be renaming Frog Lake, Viking and any other affected areas to make it clear these are regional data, and the cases are not all in one community."
On Aug. 10, Hinshaw, the province's Chief medial officer of health addressed the issue and confusion around the online map.
"Local Geographic areas, or LGAs, are organized according to an internal mapping system used by AHS. . . LGA names were not created with a real-time map and a pandemic in mind. This has led to some confusion about the area names," she said, during the update.
"For example, in the LGAs named Viking and Wainwright, people are asking if all the numbers in these areas are in these towns. That is not the case."
Hinshaw clarified that when looking at the LGA map, "the numbers represented include surrounding area numbers, not just the individual town."
