The Next Pandemic: Covid/Masking/Lockdown Lessons

Vaccination policies have shifted dramatically during COVID-19 with the rapid emergence of population-wide vaccine mandates, domestic vaccine passports and differential restrictions based on vaccination status. While these policies have prompted ...

Turning the question of mandatory vaccination into a wedge issue "may rub people the wrong way," warned one bioethicist in an interview with Global News.

The need to do something to control the pandemic may have blinded well-meaning policymakers to the costs of the policy

The first human case of a flu strain similar to a virus circulating in pigs has been reported in the UK. The individual concerned experienced mild illness and fully recovered.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, masks were widely promoted and mandated as a key measure to help reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. These policies were primarily informed by laboratory evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of particle ...

Based on the status of the COVID-19 global pandemic, there is an urgent need to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of wearing masks to protect …

Randomized controlled trials are considered the gold standard when assessing the effectiveness of an intervention. However, this type of study can vary greatly in quality, particularly in complex interventions such as face masks, affecting the reliability of the results. In this context, many scientists consider that randomized controlled trials should…

None.

Experts said a Cochrane review study seemed to imply masks don't work against COVID spread, but it was misinterpreted and was actually looking at mask interventions.

People online are touting the results of a Cochrane review to incorrectly claim that it shows masks “don’t work” against the coronavirus. But the primary conclusion of the review is that it’s uncertain from randomized controlled trials whether mask interventions in the community help slow the spread of respiratory illnesses.

A new study indicates that face masks did not significantly lower Covid-19 infection risk after the initial Omicron wave, highlighting the need for adaptable strategies and further research as risk factors evolve. New findings from the University of East Anglia suggest that wearing face masks did n

This rapid systematic review of evidence asks whether (i) wearing a face mask, (ii) one type of mask over another and (iii) mandatory mask policies can reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection, either in community-based or healthcare ...

Coronavirus skeptics are claiming a large-scale review of public health interventions proves that masks are useless against Covid-19. This is misleading; the Cochrane Library's editor-in-chief said these interpretations of the analysis are "inaccurate," and medical experts say other research shows face coverings offer some individual protection.

A new scientific review of the efficacy of masks is deeply flawed. That hasn’t stopped some from touting it

A review of Canada's current post-mandate status, evidence supporting temporary and targeted mask mandates, and critical success factors.

In 2020, with adult ICUs at risk of being overwhelmed, we wore masks and accepted restrictions. Now pediatric intensive care is at risk. Will leaders follow the evidence and tell us to mask up?

The science around the use of masks by the public to impede COVID-19 transmission is advancing rapidly. In this narrative review, we develop an ana...

“People inoculated against Covid-19 are just as likely to spread the delta variant of the virus to contacts in their household as those who haven’t had shots... according to a paper published Thursday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases medical journal.”

In last week’s newsletter on vaccine mandates, I implored you all to think. Many of you rose to the occasion with insightful feedback.

A new study has been published that evaluates the benefits of VMVP by estimating the benefits of vaccination and exclusion of unvaccinated people from different settings.

The comments come as an increasing number of governments are considering, or planning to introduce, compulsory vaccinations.

Some argue COVID-19 vaccine mandates are human rights violations. Not really, say experts. Find out what's going on around the world on vaccine mandates.

Countries without face mask mandates experienced significantly higher COVID-19 deaths per million than countries that enacted mask mandates, investigators report in a new study.

We extend previous studies on the impact of masks on COVID-19 outcomes by investigating an unprecedented breadth and depth of health outcomes, geographical resolutions, types of mask mandates, early versus later waves and controlling for other ...

Mask mandates were linked to slower uptick in COVID-19 deaths in a study analyzing data on 44 countries with a combined population of nearly 1 billion

Notes taken whilst preparing a paper on mask efficacy from Nov to Jan 2022. My previous paper on this was written in April 2020 and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science

Provinces across the country are starting to lift their restrictions and this is how some of the hardest hit ones are faring.

In response to a poll by Research Co., 37 per cent of Canadians reported they were infected themselves, or someone in their household was infected after restrictions lifted.

Purpose To improve understanding of the barriers and enablers to implementing gender and intersectional analysis during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. Methods We conducted a policy document analysis (n = 70) of equity-focused policies of the Canadian government published between March 2020 and August 2023. This analysis was complemented with 16 semi-structured key informant interviews with federal policy actors and leadership of civil society organizations. Results Pandemic policy documents demonstrated multiple commitments to address pandemic related inequities, with key informants describing collaborative approaches to implementing these policies, but also limits in terms of the urgent and diffused nature of pandemic response. Implementation gaps related to accessible information, health services and vaccinations were noted and attributed to a reliance on civil society actors who lacked sufficient and sustainable resources, and the behaviors of priority populations whose capacity to comply was limited by the same inequities the policies sought to address. Conclusion The Canadian federal government made concerted efforts to address the needs of a range of priority populations and equity issue areas within its pandemic response, with mixed results. Having a pre-established framework to guide implementation and related relationships overcame some of the urgency challenges related with pandemic response. However, implementation gaps reflected preexisting inequities shaped by broader economic, social and political systems which were infrequently addressed in pandemic policies. There is a need for greater understanding of policy implementation gaps during emergency and crisis response.