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COVID-19: Province says organizers must decide whether events go on – Calgary Herald

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Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw gives an update on the novel coronavirus during a news conference at the Alberta legislature on Monday, March 2, 2020.


Ed Kaiser / Postmedia

As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Alberta doubled to 14 Tuesday, the province’s top health official said the decision about whether to cancel mass gatherings is something organizers should assess on a case-by-case basis.

But health officials are working with politicians to set policy on when government would start requiring mandatory bans on large public events, in case those measures become necessary.

“We need to make sure that we’re aggressive and we’re ahead of where we need to go,” Alberta chief medical health officer Dr. Deena Hinshaw told media in Edmonton on Tuesday.

Alberta Health declined to comment on when they expect to unveil policy but said it will focus on risk level, not a specific number of cases.

All confirmed cases in Alberta are related to out-of-country travel and all infected Albertans are in isolation, Hinshaw said, two factors that minimize the risk of public gatherings.

“That means that these are not cases that are spreading within the province, so we’re not seeing that transmission happening at this time,” she said.

A risk assessment tool is available on the Government of Canada website to help guide decisions on postponing or cancelling events, Hinshaw noted. The tool asks event organizers to consider factors including whether attendees are coming from parts of the world affected by the new coronavirus, whether attendees are vulnerable populations such as seniors and whether the event includes activities that could lead to transmission.

The federal guidelines also offer ways to reduce the risk without cancelling the event, such as by limiting the number of people who attend, staggering arrivals and departures, making more handwashing stations available or even livestreaming activities online.

Some Calgary event organizers aren’t waiting for an official decree to cancel their gatherings.

On Tuesday, organizers for the World’s Longest Hockey Game fundraiser event, set to take place in Calgary in July 2020, announced they were postponing the event until 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as economic turmoil in Alberta. The event would have raised money for local charities over a marathon 12 days.

“With players sleeping in such tight quarters and international dignitaries coming we felt this would be the safest way to ensure the health of our players, staff and spectators,” Ray Francis, the event’s chair, said in a statement.


Calgary Flames say they’re monitoring the COVID-19 situation, but not yet making any decisions on limiting fan attendance at games.

Gavin Young /

Postmedia

Earlier in the week, the City of Calgary announced the cancellation of its Safety Expo, an annual educational event at city hall for students in Grades 5 and 6, which would have taken place Wednesday and Thursday. Officials said the decision was made “out of an abundance of caution,” in part due to the amount of youth and first responders who would have been in attendance.

A number of high-profile North American events have either been postponed or will go on with restricted public access.

Grunge band Pearl Jam announced Tuesday it would postpone the initial leg of its tour, including some Canadian dates, over concerns about COVID-19. It’s the first major act to cancel a live performance in Canada because of the virus, according to the Canadian Live Music Association.

The National Hockey League is also monitoring the spread of the virus in Canada and the United States and putting contingency plans together in case large gatherings become unsafe. In the California county home to the San Jose Sharks, where public health officials have banned gatherings of more than 1,000 people, the team may play home games in an empty building or at another site.

The Calgary Flames say they’re monitoring the situation and taking precautionary measures.

Meanwhile, local arts organizations such as the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and Theatre Calgary say they will move forward with business as usual until Alberta Health Services or a level of government tells them otherwise, adding that they’re introducing measures to reduce risk at their events.

— With files from Sammy Hudes and The Canadian Press

jherring@postmedia.com

Twitter: @jasonfherring

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Canada to donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to combat mpox outbreaks in Africa

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The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.

It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.

Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”

Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.

Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.

On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.

Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”

But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”

“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.

Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.

Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.

Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.

“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.

“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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How many Nova Scotians are on the doctor wait-list? Number hit 160,000 in June

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HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.

The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.

Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.

“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”

The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.

A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.

Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.

“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.

Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.

The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.

“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.

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Newfoundland and Labrador monitoring rise in whooping cough cases: medical officer

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ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.

Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.

The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.

“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.

Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.

Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.

A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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