The coronavirus outbreak that has infected thousands of people in more than 100 countries is a pandemic, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made the announcement as the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus rose to more than 118,000 in 114 countries, with 4,291 deaths.
“Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly,” Tedros said. “It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.”
“This is not just a public-health crisis,” he said, but added that countries should “double down and we should be more aggressive” and focus on containment, given the increasing case numbers. He encouraged countries to find and test every case, prepare hospitals, train health workers and co-operate.
“This is everybody’s business,” he said, while pointing out that 81 countries have not reported any cases and 57 countries have reported 10 cases or less.
WATCH | Doctor says mild cases help spread the virus:
‘Everybody get ready,’ Dr. Peter Lin says of the need to prepare for a strain on the health-care system. 4:16
The WHO labelled the outbreak that first emerged in China as a global health emergency of international concern in late January. Although China has seen the bulk of the world’s cases, the spread of COVID-19 has created new hotspots in places like Italy and Iran.
Tedros said 90 per cent of the cases are in just four countries and two of them, China and South Korea, are seeing “significantly declining epidemics.”
Dr. Mike Ryan, director of WHO’s emergencies program, said Iran and Italy are on the front line of the outbreak now — but he cautioned that other countries will soon be dealing with larger case numbers.
“They’re suffering, but I guarantee you other countries will be in that situation soon,” Ryan said.
“There have to be very strong efforts made to suppress infection,” Ryan said, noting that it would — at a minimum — slow the spread and ease the burden on health systems.
Expanding clusters of the new coronavirus continued to upended daily life, in places like an increasingly locked-down Italy, which counted more than 12,400 infections and recorded 827 deaths.
“Right now, the epicentre — the new China — is Europe,” said Robert Redfield, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Rome’s usual boisterous hum was reduced to a whisper as Italy’s 62 million people were told to mostly stay home. Though shops, cafes and restaurants remained open, police around the country were enforcing rules that customers stay one metre apart and certain businesses shutter by 6 p.m.
Financial relief
The health crisis was dealing a serious blow to Italy’s economy — the third-largest of the 19 countries using the euro — and threatened instability worldwide.
Markets across Asia dropped Wednesday despite Wall Street’s gains a day earlier. Investors seemed encouraged by promises by U.S. President Donald Trump of a relief package to cushion economic pain from the outbreak. Governments around Asia and elsewhere have also announced billions of dollars in stimulus funds, including packages revealed in Japan on Tuesday and Australia on Wednesday.
The Italian government is promising to inject 10 billion euros ($15.5 billion Cdn) into the economy and allow a moratorium on debt payments such as mortgages during the outbreak. Britain’s Treasury chief has announced a 30 billion-pound ($53-billion Cdn) package of measures designed to help the economy as it grapples with the outbreak.
For most, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for a few, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illnesses, including pneumonia. More than 119,000 people have been infected worldwide and over 4,200 have died.
The virus has disrupted travel, closed schools and halted manufacturing in places around the globe. Here’s a look at what’s happening in Canada, the U.S. and some of the hard-hit regions around the world.
Here’s what’s happening in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said while Canada hasn’t seen a “drastic spike” in coronavirus cases, the government needs to ensure it’s ready for “all scenarios.”
On Wednesday, he announced a $1-billion fund to help tackle COVID-19 and deal with the economic impact of the virus.
The fund — which includes money toward public education campaigns and research — will also be used to buy supplies for health-care workers.
According to a statement, $500 million will go to provinces and territories for “critical health-care system needs and to support mitigation efforts as needed.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau breaks down the $1-billion fund to help Canadians cope with the spread of COVID-19. 2:41
“This could include help to support with access to testing, acquisition of equipment, and to enhance surveillance and monitoring.”
Ottawa is also providing support to workers who have been put under quarantine or told to self-isolate by waiving the one-week waiting period for employment insurance.
“No one should have to worry about their job if they have to be quarantined,” he said, and no employer should feel they have to lay off a worker because of the virus.
“We need to make sure that everyone is given the tools they need,” Trudeau said, later adding that Ottawa is ready to do more as needed.
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam said federal and provincial health authorities are preparing for a “range of scenarios” but that Canadians can take steps to slow the spread of the Covid-19. She spoke during a press conference where the federal government announcement $1B fund to respond to the disease. 2:08
The Public Agency of Canada, which has been continually assessing the risk from the outbreak, says that the risk to the general population in Canada is low, but notes “this could change rapidly.”
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, has noted that some people face an increased risk.
1/5 <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#COVID19</a> Risk to Canadians: people over 65 years of age and people with a weakened immune system or underlying medical condition are at a higher risk of developing severe disease.
Health officials in Canada have reported one death linked to COVID-19 — a man in his 80s who lived at a long-term care facility in B.C.
In Ontario, Laurentian University in Sudbury is moving all its classes online, starting Thursday, in response to the city’s first case, a Sudbury man who tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a mining conference in Toronto.
The city of Ottawa is also reporting its first case, a man in his 40s who is thought to have contracted the virus while travelling in Austria. Hamilton’s first case is a radiation oncologist who recently returned from Hawaii.
Here’s what’s happening in the U.S.
In the U.S., the caseload passed 1,000, and outbreaks on both sides of the country. Dozens of cases were being tied to a conference in Boston, and leaders in multiple states were announcing curbs on large events.
Colleges around the country emptied their classrooms as they moved to online instruction and uncertainty surrounded the upcoming opening of the Major League Baseball season and college basketball’s championships. Even the famed buffets of Las Vegas were affected, with some of the Strip’s biggest being closed in a precautionary measure.
A health-care worker tests people Wednesday at a drive-thru testing station run by the Colorado health department in Denver for people who suspect they have novel coronavirus. (Jim Urquhart/Reuters)
“It’s terrifying,” said Silvana Gomez, a student at Harvard University, where undergraduates were told to leave campus by Sunday. “I’m definitely very scared right now about what the next couple days, the next couple weeks look like.”
New York’s governor said National Guard troops would scrub public places and deliver food to a suburb where infections have spiked. In Washington state, where a Seattle-area nursing home was the centre of an outbreak, officials said the virus had spread to at least 10 other long-term care facilities.
In California, thousands of restless passengers remained stuck aboard a cruise ship, waiting for their turn to disembark to begin quarantines.
Two men vying to take on Trump in the U.S. presidential election abruptly cancelled rallies Tuesday and left open the possibility that future campaign events could be impacted, too. Trump’s campaign insisted it would proceed as normal, though Vice-President Mike Pence conceded future rallies would be evaluated “on a day to day basis.”
Here’s what’s happening in Italy and Europe
Italy’s lockdown measures to try to beat the coronavirus are reducing its economic output by around 10 per cent to 15 per cent, Lorenzo Codogno, a former Italian Treasury chief economist, said on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte unexpectedly expanded the so-called red zone to the entire country on Monday night, introducing the most severe controls on a Western nation.
Pope Francis held his weekly general audience in his private library as the Vatican implemented Italy’s drastic coronavirus lockdown measures, barred the general public from St. Peter’s Square and took precautions to limit the spread of infections in the tiny city-state.
WATCH | People in Italy complying with one-metre distance policy:
‘People are really kicking into gear’ and respecting strict Italian regulations, says correspondent Megan Williams 2:24
The Vatican representative to East Timor said a visit by Pope Francis has been cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak. Monsignor Marco Sprizzi of the Apostolic Nunciature told reporters in Dili that Francis had previously indicated his willingness to visit East Timor later this year. But Sprizzi cited concerns about large crowds, saying “because he did not want his people affected by the coronavirus, he cancelled his visit.”
Italy isn’t the only country in Europe dealing with a growing number of cases of COVID-19.
Spain: Spain’s ministry of health on Wednesday reported more than 2,100 cases with 47 deaths. Roughly half the cases are in the Madrid region.
Germany: Germany on Wednesday confirmed its third death related to the coronavirus as another patient in the badly affected district of Heinsberg in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia died. Germany has reported a total of 1,296 cases.
France: France’s health ministry was reporting 1,784 cases as of Tuesday, with more than 30 deaths.
United Kingdom: The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus across the U.K. has risen to 456, up from 373 a day earlier, the health ministry said on Wednesday. The number of patients who died after testing positive for the virus remained unchanged at six.
Poland is closing all schools, universities, cinemas, theatres and museums for two weeks from Thursday to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, government representatives said on Wednesday. Poland has confirmed 26 cases of coronavirus, but looking at how fast the virus spreads in some other European countries, the government decided to take the preventive action, they said.
A man in protective gear gives a fact sheet of the coronavirus to a driver arriving from Italy at a border crossing near Matrei am Brenner, Austria, on Wednesday. Austria is turning away people arriving from Italy, except those with a doctor’s certificate. Freight is still being allowed in and any Austrians arriving will also be admitted but will need to submit to quarantine. (Jan Hetfleisch/Getty Images)
Swiss customs authorities have shut down nine border crossings with Italy, the epicentre of Europe’s coronavirus outbreak, to channel border traffic through seven other sites.
The move announced Wednesday follows a decision by Italian authorities to continue to allow cross-border traffic with Switzerland despite adopting strong quarantine measures across Italy. Neighbours Austria and Slovenia have barred travellers from Italy without a medical certificate.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said at a rare, hastily convened news conference Wednesday in Berlin that it’s important for European leaders to discuss “what are good and effective measures and what aren’t.” She said “we in Germany, in any case, are of the opinion that border closures are not an appropriate response to the challenge.”
Here’s what’s happening in Iran and the Middle East
Iran said Wednesday that the novel coronavirus killed 63 more people, raising the death toll to 354 amid over 9,000 cases in the Islamic Republic.
Across the Mideast, the vast majority of the 9,000 people who have contracted the virus and the COVID-19 illness it causes are in hard-hit Iran. Outside the Islamic Republic, only Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon have recorded deaths from the virus in the Mideast.
A civil defence worker wearing a protective suit sprays disinfectant in Baghdad’s main market as a precaution against the novel coronavirus on Tuesday. (Hadi Mizban/The Associated Press)
Israel has 82 confirmed coronavirus cases. Earlier in the week, the government announced that everyone arriving in Israel will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days.
In Bahrain, authorities say the number of confirmed cases on Wednesday spiked by nearly 70 per cent to 189. The new cases were all on a returning flight of Bahraini evacuees from Iran.
Officials found 77 on board tested positive for the novel coronavirus, compared to the 112 already reported in the island country off the coast of Saudi Arabia.
Here’s what’s happening in China
In China, officials said they’d counted only 24 new cases on Wednesday. In a reversal of positions, China is seeing new cases brought in from overseas.
WATCH | China’s coronavirus epicentre loosens some quarantine restrictions:
Drop in new cases of COVID-19 permits work to resume for some in Wuhan. 0:25
In Beijing, the capital, all the new cases of COVID-19 reported on Wednesday came from outside the country, five from Italy and one from the United States. “The epidemic situation is at a low level and the prevention and control are continuously going well,” said Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission.
Beijing’s city government said all passengers arriving in the city from overseas, regardless of their points of departure, are now be required to undergo a 14-day quarantine.
Here’s what’s happening in South Korea and Japan
The other major outbreak site in Asia, South Korea, continued to report improving numbers, too, with 242 new cases announced Wednesday. Still, a cluster of infections connected to a call centre in one of the busiest areas of that country’s capital was raising alarms.
More than half of South Korea’s 51 million people live in the Seoul metropolitan area.
So far, 93 people have tested positive among the call centre’s employees and their families, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said Wednesday in a briefing broadcast over YouTube. The number could grow as tests are being done on more than 550 co-workers who worked on other floors of the Korea Building in Seoul’s Guro district.
Health workers in white protective suits scrambled to sanitize the nearby Sindorim subway station, which is used by more than 404,000 commuters per day, according to Seoul Metro.
Disinfection workers wearing protective gear spray antiseptic solution against the coronavirus in a subway at Seoul metro railway base on Wednesday. (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
While most of the infected workers live in Seoul, some of them commute from nearby cities such as Incheon and Bucheon, raising concern about a broader spread through public transit.
Call centre workers may be vulnerable because they work long hours in crowded and confined spaces, said Yoon Tae-ho, an official from South Korea’s health ministry.
Jung Eun-kyeong, director of South Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said it would be difficult to track infections if they spread to buses and subways. She said it’s “most critical” that public transit operators vigorously sanitize handles, bars and anything passengers frequently touch with the threat of local transmissions growing.
Park said Seoul is investigating the working conditions of more than 400 call centres in the city and will push employers to allow more employees to work from home. The mayor said authorities were responding actively to prevent the cluster from intensifying like South Korea’s earlier clusters around the southeastern city of Daegu.
Here’s a look at what’s happening in some other areas as COVID-19 spreads
Dr. Samir Gupta says Canada is doing more testing and seeing more cases, but the health-care system can manage, so far. 6:18
India ramped up travel restrictions and closed a border with neighbouring Myanmar to counter the coronavirus outbreak, as countries across South Asia reported a rise in cases on Wednesday.
In Afghanistan, the number of confirmed cases rose to seven from four, the country’s health ministry said.
Democratic Republic of Congo confirmed its first case of coronavirus on Tuesday, bringing the number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa hit by the epidemic to seven.
Indonesia says a foreigner has become its first fatality from COVID-19. Achmad Yurianto, the government spokesperson on efforts to contain the coronavirus, said Wednesday the 53-year-old woman had diabetes and lung disease and had contracted the virus abroad.
Honduras has confirmed the first two cases of the novel coronavirus in its territory, the health ministry said.
Guatemala’s health minister said the country will ban the entry of citizens of European countries, Iran, China and South Korea, starting Thursday, in an attempt to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The Central American country has yet to confirm any cases of COVID-19.
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.
