Day after day, premiers have announced new restrictions on Canadians’ civil liberties that they say are critical to limiting the spread of COVID-19.
But it is the chief medical officers at their side who provide the science buttressing the calls for sacrifice. Some have become stars in their own right, displaying a kind of televisual bedside manner that combines a reassuring, fact-based approach with occasional levity.
Quebec’s chief doctor, Horacio Arruda, recently shared his weekend self-isolation plan to bake Portuguese tarts, while Alberta’s Deena Hinshaw recently wore a periodic-table-themed dress that lit up social media.
The scientists are pushing aside athletes and other entertainers for the public’s attention as citizens try to navigate through unprecedented times.
Behavioural scientist Samuel Veissiere, a McGill University professor of psychiatry, said that confronted with a vague sense of impending doom, people want to reduce uncertainty.
“They want meaning, and they are looking to people they perceive as experts to give them answers in terms of what’s going to happen,” Veissiere said in an interview Friday. “People want stats, numbers. They want answers.”
Before the pandemic, academics often lamented the public’s loss of trust in institutions and in expert knowledge, Veissiere said. But that might be changing.
“People are becoming a little more humble,” he said. “I think they are becoming aware of just, perhaps, the limitations of individualism and how important it is to work together as a community, including in identifying reliable sources of information.”
These are some of the key figures helping Canadians comprehend an unfamiliar, invisible enemy.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada
Chief Public Health Officer of Canada Dr. Theresa Tam speaks during a press conference on COVID-19 at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa, on Monday, March 16, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
The country’s chief public health officer knows pandemics, and what it takes to fight them.
Each day, Tam’s steely, distinctive voice reminds Canadians that there’s little public health officials can do on their own, and everyone has a role to play in protecting the community from COVID-19.
Her main job is to provide advice to the federal minister of health, and she is responsible for heading the Public Health Agency of Canada.
She is also the main co-ordinator among public health agencies across the country. In a system where each province manages its own health system, perhaps her most important job is to be Canada’s unifying and rallying voice in the fight against COVID-19.
Internationally, she has advised the World Health Organization on infectious diseases like Ebola, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and poliovirus.
Born in Hong Kong, Tam got her medical degree in the United Kingdom before completing her pediatric residence at the University of Alberta and a fellowship in pediatric infectious diseases at the University of British Columbia.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta
Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw updates media on the COVID-19 situation in Edmonton on Friday March 20, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson
Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, has become the reassuring face of the response to COVID-19, delivering daily web updates to thousands in a Spockian tone, urging calm while not shying away from the fatal consequences of ignorance and indolence.
In doing so, Hinshaw has become a pseudo-celebrity in her own right. Twitter blew up with concern last week when Hinshaw announced she was self-isolating after waking up with cold symptoms. She delivered her update from home that day and was back at the podium the next day after testing negative for novel coronavirus.
When she wore a dress patterned on chemistry’s periodic table, the garment’s Victoria manufacturer received a slew of orders for it.
Some on social media are calling for her to be the next parade marshal for the Calgary Stampede.
Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry listens during a news conference about the provincial response to the coronavirus, in Vancouver on Friday, March 6, 2020. Henry says the women’s curling world championship in Prince George will go ahead as planned starting Saturday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
When Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, cried during a press conference at which she confirmed two elderly people had contracted COVID-19 in a long-term care home, her compassion and resolve was described by colleagues and friends as a galvanizing moment in Canada’s fight against the global virus.
Henry paused to compose herself before warning that Canada’s elderly are most at risk from COVID-19, and she urged everybody to do what they can to protect the vulnerable.
Those who know Henry say she is both knowledgeable and battle-tested. Appointed to the position in 2018, she is an experienced virus hunter who has battled SARS, Ebola, H1N1 and polio during her career.
Henry headed the B.C. Centre for Disease Control on an acting basis during H1N1 and is the author of “Soap and Water and Common Sense,” a guide to staying healthy in a microbe-filled world.
Former B.C. health minister Terry Lake called her “the voice of reason and calm.”
Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia
Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health, holds a press conference in Halifax on Friday, October 28, 2016. Strang says he and colleagues from across Canada are on alert as health officials in the U.S. continue to investigate nearly 200 cases of severe respiratory illnesses potentially linked to vaping. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese
Strang was no stranger to Nova Scotians before the COVID-19 pandemic, having frequently spoken out on prominent health issues.
The province’s chief medical officer since 2007, Strang has been a passionate anti-smoking advocate, and last May he lent his voice to a successful campaign to have rugby reinstated in the province’s high schools.
In recent days, he’s used his authority to monitor social media and admonish those spreading rumours and false information about the novel coronavirus. He also took people to task for attempting to “out” others who weren’t self-isolating upon their return from vacation, urging the public to leave the detective work to health officials.
Strang completed his community medicine residency in 1997 in British Columbia. He worked in that province as an associate medical officer of health until 1999, when he moved to Halifax.
Dr. Horacio Arruda, Quebec
Horacio Arruda, Quebec director of National Public Health responds to reporters questions at a daily news conference on the COVID-19 pandemic, Saturday, March 21, 2020 at the legislature in Quebec City. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
When Arruda recently told Quebecers that he would spend part of the weekend baking to take his mind off the COVID-19 pandemic, it was his way of lightening the daily barrage of bad news about the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Arruda’s colourful language and his stern but fact-based approach to the province’s pandemic response has endeared him to many Quebecers.
Photos and videos of him are circulating widely on social media, including an image of his face edited onto a photo of actor Will Smith, whose character in the 2007 movie, “I am Legend,” fights a viral outbreak in a post-apocalyptic dystopia.
“I don’t want to distress people. I don’t want to make people anxious,” Arruda recently said. “Don’t be anxious. If you’re anxious, call somebody, try to have an activity that you love. Everybody is different. It could be yoga, it could be music, it could be dancing …. Just be innovative.”
Arruda, 59, the province’s director of public health since 2012, played a central role after the Lac-Megantic rail disaster that claimed 47 lives. A medical specialist in community health, he has focused on epidemiology and the prevention and control of infectious diseases.
Dr. Jennifer Russell, New Brunswick
Dr. Jennifer Russell addresses the media on Monday, March 16, 2020.
File
Russell has been put under the spotlight as her province navigates through a state of emergency imposed Thursday by Premier Blaine Higgs on her recommendation. The province’s chief medical officer of health since 2015, Russell has a background working for the Canadian Forces and Veterans Affairs.
She weaves directives to citizens about avoiding mass gatherings and implementing social distancing with calls for people to stay connected with one another by phone or through social media, to eat well, exercise and take deep breaths.
“It is up to us to take actions that will slow the spread of the virus, and give our doctors, nurses and other health-care professionals the best chance to cope with its impact,” Russell said last week.
Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba
Manitoba’s chief provincial public health officer, Dr. Brent Roussin, right, and Health Minister Cameron Friesen announce the province’s plans against COVID-19 Tuesday.
Amber McGuckin/Global News
Roussin, Manitoba’s chief public health officer, recently told reporters he would work every day until the COVID-19 pandemic is under control.
Roussin and Lanette Siragusa, chief nursing officer, have drawn praise for providing up-to-date information about the spread of the virus in the province.
Roussin’s calm demeanour and straightforward answers in the province’s daily online briefings have been noted. He takes time to discuss the unique challenges COVID-19 poses for Manitoba’s Indigenous population and has held a specific news conference to discuss how northern First Nations communities can stay safe during the pandemic.
A specialist in public health and preventive medicine, Roussin worked with the federal First Nations and Inuit Health Branch and was a medical officer of health for northern Manitoba before taking up his current position.
Dr. Eileen de Villa, Toronto
Dr. Eileen de Villa, Medical Officer of Health for the City of Toronto attends a news conference in Toronto, on Monday, January 27, 2020, as officials provide an update on the coronavirus in Canada.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Toronto’s top public health doctor is used to making headlines.
De Villa has previously commanded coverage for criticizing Ontario’s loosened alcohol regulations and calling for the decriminalization of all personal-use drugs in Canada, saying drug use should be treated as a public health issue rather than a criminal one.
She also called gun violence a growing public health concern, prompting the Toronto Board of Health to ask the prime minister to ban the sale of handguns.
Since COVID-19 was first reported in Canada in late January in a Toronto-based patient who had recently returned from China, de Villa has urged calm and vigilance instead of panic and apathy.
A recent video clip of her laying out the dos and don’ts of social distancing _ do stay home, don’t hang out with friends or go shopping _ attracted much attention online, and a Twitter account has been created celebrating her stylish scarves.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, Newfoundland and Labrador
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, Newfounland and Labrador’s chief medical officer of health, addresses media on COVID-19 on March 21, 2020.
Facebook: Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
Fitzgerald has urged residents to practise social distancing to protect others in the community while reminding them to exercise, tend to their mental health and check in on family and friends.
On Friday, she told people it’s normal to be afraid and assured them health officials are working to protect them.
Newfoundland and Labrador’s interim chief medical officer of health has attracted praise from politicians for leading her small staff through the province’s pandemic response, and she has become popular on social media.
“We removed the title ‘interim,’ but she hasn’t signed a contract yet, and I don’t know whether that’s intentional or not,” Health Minister John Haggie joked Friday. Premier Dwight Ball suggested there would be widespread support for keeping her in the job.
Dr. Brendan Hanley, Yukon
Hanley studied medicine at the University of Alberta, the University of Liverpool and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
He came to the chief medical officer job in Yukon from being chief of emergency at the Whitehorse General Hospital, where he still practises part-time.
His experience includes practices in rural and inner-city locations around Canada and internationally. He has spent many years working in the Canadian Arctic. He has also seen regular service with Doctors Without Borders and other relief organizations.
During his time in Yukon, Hanley has worked to create partnerships in the territory’s small and far-flung communities to strengthen its overall public health system.
Dr. Saqib Shahab, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan’s Provincial Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab speaks during an update on COVID-19 at the Legislative Building in Regina on Wednesday March 11, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Michael Bell
Michael Bell / The Canadian Press
Shahab, Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer since 2012, has been the calm face at the front of Saskatchewan’s response to COVID-19.
He’s been on the front lines of Saskatchewan’s public health since 2009, when he was named deputy chief medical health officer.
Prior to that he worked internationally as an internist. He has also worked as a public health expert with multilateral health and donor agencies.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2020
_ With files from Laura Osman, Dean Bennett, Dirk Meissner, Sidhartha Banerjee, Keith Doucette, Julian McKenzie, Kelly Geraldine Malone, Nicole Thompson, Holly McKenzie-Sutter and Bob Weber
Skinstitut Holiday Gift Kits take the stress out of gifting
Toronto, October 31, 2024 – Beauty gifts are at the top of holiday wish lists this year, and Laser Clinics Canada, a leader in advanced beauty treatments and skincare, is taking the pressure out of seasonal shopping. Today, Laser Clincs Canada announces the arrival of its 2024 Holiday Gift Kits, courtesy of Skinstitut, the exclusive skincare line of Laser Clinics Group.
In time for the busy shopping season, the limited-edition Holiday Gifts Kits are available in Laser Clinics locations in the GTA and Ottawa. Clinics are conveniently located in popular shopping centers, including Hillcrest Mall, Square One, CF Sherway Gardens, Scarborough Town Centre, Rideau Centre, Union Station and CF Markville. These limited-edition Kits are available on a first come, first served basis.
“These kits combine our best-selling products, bundled to address the most relevant skin concerns we’re seeing among our clients,” says Christina Ho, Senior Brand & LAM Manager at Laser Clinics Canada. “With several price points available, the kits offer excellent value and suit a variety of gift-giving needs, from those new to cosmeceuticals to those looking to level up their skincare routine. What’s more, these kits are priced with a savings of up to 33 per cent so gift givers can save during the holiday season.
There are two kits to select from, each designed to address key skin concerns and each with a unique theme — Brightening Basics and Hydration Heroes.
Brightening Basics is a mix of everyday essentials for glowing skin for all skin types. The bundle comes in a sleek pink, reusable case and includes three full-sized products: 200ml gentle cleanser, 50ml Moisture Defence (normal skin) and 30ml1% Hyaluronic Complex Serum. The Brightening Basics kit is available at $129, a saving of 33 per cent.
Hydration Heroes is a mix of hydration essentials and active heroes that cater to a wide variety of clients. A perfect stocking stuffer, this bundle includes four deluxe products: Moisture 15 15 ml Defence for normal skin, 10 ml 1% Hyaluronic Complex Serum, 10 ml Retinol Serum and 50 ml Expert Squalane Cleansing Oil. The kit retails at $59.
In addition to the 2024 Holiday Gifts Kits, gift givers can easily add a Laser Clinic Canada gift card to the mix. Offering flexibility, recipients can choose from a wide range of treatments offered by Laser Clinics Canada, or they can expand their collection of exclusive Skinstitut products.
Brightening Basics 2024 Holiday Gift Kit by Skinstitut, available exclusively at Laser Clincs Canada clinics and online at skinstitut.ca.
Hydration Heroes 2024 Holiday Gift Kit by Skinstitut – available exclusively at Laser Clincs Canada clinics and online at skinstitut.ca.
LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?
It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.
Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:
Apple
The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.
For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.
You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.
Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.
Google
Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.
When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.
You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.
There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.
Facebook and Instagram
Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.
When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.
The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.
You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.
TikTok
The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.
Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.
X
It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.
Passwords
Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?
Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.
But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.
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Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.
The Canadian Paediatric Society says doctors should regularly screen children for reading difficulties and dyslexia, calling low literacy a “serious public health concern” that can increase the risk of other problems including anxiety, low self-esteem and behavioural issues, with lifelong consequences.
New guidance issued Wednesday says family doctors, nurses, pediatricians and other medical professionals who care for school-aged kids are in a unique position to help struggling readers access educational and specialty supports, noting that identifying problems early couldhelp kids sooner — when it’s more effective — as well as reveal other possible learning or developmental issues.
The 10 recommendations include regular screening for kids aged four to seven, especially if they belong to groups at higher risk of low literacy, including newcomers to Canada, racialized Canadians and Indigenous Peoples. The society says this can be done in a two-to-three-minute office-based assessment.
Other tips encourage doctors to look for conditions often seen among poor readers such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; to advocate for early literacy training for pediatric and family medicine residents; to liaise with schools on behalf of families seeking help; and to push provincial and territorial education ministries to integrate evidence-based phonics instruction into curriculums, starting in kindergarten.
Dr. Scott McLeod, one of the authors and chair of the society’s mental health and developmental disabilities committee, said a key goal is to catch kids who may be falling through the cracks and to better connect families to resources, including quicker targeted help from schools.
“Collaboration in this area is so key because we need to move away from the silos of: everything educational must exist within the educational portfolio,” McLeod said in an interview from Calgary, where he is a developmental pediatrician at Alberta Children’s Hospital.
“Reading, yes, it’s education, but it’s also health because we know that literacy impacts health. So I think that a statement like this opens the window to say: Yes, parents can come to their health-care provider to get advice, get recommendations, hopefully start a collaboration with school teachers.”
McLeod noted that pediatricians already look for signs of low literacy in young children by way of a commonly used tool known as the Rourke Baby Record, which offers a checklist of key topics, such as nutrition and developmental benchmarks, to cover in a well-child appointment.
But he said questions about reading could be “a standing item” in checkups and he hoped the society’s statement to medical professionals who care for children “enhances their confidence in being a strong advocate for the child” while spurring partnerships with others involved in a child’s life such as teachers and psychologists.
The guidance said pediatricians also play a key role in detecting and monitoring conditions that often coexist with difficulty reading such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, but McLeod noted that getting such specific diagnoses typically involves a referral to a specialist, during which time a child continues to struggle.
He also acknowledged that some schools can be slow to act without a specific diagnosis from a specialist, and even then a child may end up on a wait list for school interventions.
“Evidence-based reading instruction shouldn’t have to wait for some of that access to specialized assessments to occur,” he said.
“My hope is that (by) having an existing statement or document written by the Canadian Paediatric Society … we’re able to skip a few steps or have some of the early interventions present,” he said.
McLeod added that obtaining specific assessments from medical specialists is “definitely beneficial and advantageous” to know where a child is at, “but having that sort of clear, thorough assessment shouldn’t be a barrier to intervention starting.”
McLeod said the society was partly spurred to act by 2022’s “Right to Read Inquiry Report” from the Ontario Human Rights Commission, which made 157 recommendations to address inequities related to reading instruction in that province.
He called the new guidelines “a big reminder” to pediatric providers, family doctors, school teachers and psychologists of the importance of literacy.
“Early identification of reading difficulty can truly change the trajectory of a child’s life.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.
