Canadians don’t have to worry about entire cities being quarantined, even in the _ likely _ event of new coronavirus infections across the country, public health officials said on Friday. .
They say there is no risk of witnessing here what happened in Wuhan, a Chinese city of 11 million people where the outbreak of new coronavirus pneumonia was born. “If a case occurs here – and it’s likely to happen – life will go on,” said Dr. Peter Donnelly, Director of Public Health in Ontario. Global Affairs Canada recommended Friday to “avoid non-essential travel” to Hubei Province, including the cities of Wuhan, Huanggang and Ezhou, due to Chinese authorities imposing “severe restrictions” “to limit the spread of the new coronavirus. Besides Wuhan, China has closed down transportation in at least 12 other cities, which have more than 36 million people. Busy streets, malls and other public spaces have become strangely deserted, masks are compulsory in public, and some hospitals are running out of medical supplies.
Toronto medical officer of health Eileen de Villa urged citizens to consult credible sources of information about the viral outbreak, such as the Public Health Agency of Canada website. As of Friday, the coronavirus is said to have killed at least 25 people, all in China; more than 850 confirmed cases of infection have also been reported. The tests carried out in Quebec in recent days on six people from China were also all negative, announced Friday the national director of public health, Horacio Arruda. Symptoms of coronavirus infection are similar to colds or flu – cough, fever, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. But the infection can turn into pneumonia, a more serious disease. Although no cases have been reported in Canada, concerns about the spread of the virus in Canada have revived memories – especially in Ontario – of memories of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003. The outbreak had left 44 people dead in the greater Toronto area and the city had temporarily become a “plague victim” _ the World Health Organization (WHO) had launched a warning advising travelers to avoid the Canadian metropolis.
Better prepared than in 2003
Dr. Donnelly, of Public Health Ontario, recalls that the situation is now very different, because the authorities are much better prepared than they were for SARS: communications are more effective, hospitals have better facilities. isolation, if necessary, and a reliable test is available to detect coronavirus within 24 hours. “Just two weeks ago, scientists didn’t know anything about this disease; today we know the full genome of the virus and we have a specific and reliable test, said Dr. Donnelly. However, in such situations, what matters is speed and certainty. Public health officials are also working with the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg to develop an even faster test, said Dr. Donnelly.
His colleague De Villa also stresses the importance of practicing good basic hygiene to prevent the transmission of viruses _ in general. The simple steps are to wash your hands thoroughly, cough or sneeze into the crease of your elbow, and stay home if you are sick. Although the WHO has decided not to declare a “public health emergency of international concern”, Dr. Donnelly assured that the authorities are making every effort to ensure that any cases reported in Canada would be treated effectively and promptly. Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said on Thursday that the chances of an epidemic in the country are low. Public health officials also recalled that the common cold comes from the same family as the new coronavirus, and that the flu virus kills thousands of Canadians each year.
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