Controlling the spread of contagion is a goal of emergency pandemic planning to reduce both illness (morbidity) and death (mortality) by providing appropriate prevention measures, care, and treatment.

• Long Term Care home quarantine
• ID Persons with Co-morbidities (non-LTC home)
• MOH Tasks

• Assurance of Medical capacity
• for Covid
• for other severe illness
• to monitor Covid shifts and zoonotic transfer
• Research and implementation of treatments for Covid
• Covid Testing Resources and plans
• ID the Vulnerable Survey
• Individual and Group Risk Prevention/Control Measures
• Public Announcements and Advice

Figure 1. Many respiratory viruses have a seasonal impact on our society.

Over 353,000 postponed surgeries

Public policy think tank SecondStreet.org released freedom of information responses today from across Canada with data on the number of surgeries, procedures and consultations with specialists that were postponed due to the pandemic. “Governments could be much more transparent about patient suffering due to postponed surgeries and procedures,” added Craig. “We know some patients have died from surgical delays, but we really don’t know the extent of the problem.”

Will a face mask really protect you from a virus?

The research is mixed on this topic and the answer often varies by mask type. A study published in JAMA in 2019 compared the ubiquitous surgical (or medical) mask, which costs much less, to an N95 respirator. The study reported "no significant difference in the effectiveness" of medical masks vs. N95 respirators for prevention of influenza or other viral respiratory illness (Radonovich et al., 2019). For men with facial hair it is important to understand that some facial hairstyles are better suited for providing a superior mask seal than others.

Click here to view mask information from Health Canada.

Click here to view mask information from the US CDC.