In The News

SARS Scare in Toronto

April 25, 2003
Toronto is the Western city most affected by Sars, with 140 cases reported so far. The World Health Organization recently warned travelers to stay away from the city, infuriating Toronto officials, who say Sars in Toronto can be traced to one carrier and is under control. The Centers for Disease Control in the US have not warned against travel to Toronto, further complicating the situation. In...

SARS: Wake-Up Call for a Strong Global Health Policy

Ilona Kickbusch April 25, 2003
As the economic consequences of Sars become more and more apparent, countries are scrambling for solutions. However, argues Ilona Kickbusch, Professor of Global Health at Yale University's School of Public Health, individual nation-states are unequipped to manage something like Sars by themselves. In an interconnected world, we must acknowledge the truly global nature of public health, and...

Virus Proves Baffling, Turning Up in Only 40% of a Lab's Test Cases

Lawrence K. Altman April 24, 2003
Canada's main virology laboratory has found the SARS virus identified by WHO in only some of its probable and suspect cases.

Fight Against SARS: Government to Seek Exit Checks

April 24, 2003
The Public Health Ministers of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) are scheduled to meet in Malaysia to discuss specific proposals for regional cooperation to combat further spread of SARS. Thailand’s proposals include the screening of all departing passengers, the establishment of a regional website to share SARS related information, and the exchange of medical professionals...

Beijing Closes Schools as SARS Cases Rise

Erik Eckholm April 23, 2003
After revealing an increase in SARS cases in Beijing, Chinese officials have shut down the city's primary and secondary schools for at least two weeks. The city recently admitted it had concealed the severity of the epidemic, and is now struggling to contain both the disease and related public panic. In an effort to maintain a semblance of routine, and aided by a recent increase in computer...

Health Officials Seek Help from U.S. to Control Virus

Lawrence Altman April 23, 2003
Responding to studies which show that the SARS virus can survive for up to 24 hours on objects and recently infected health care workers in two Toronto hospitals, Dr. James Young, the Ontario commissioner of public safety, invited a Center for Disease Control (CDC) team from Atlanta to discuss and help strengthen infection control measures. The US and Canada have been working together and...

Sars Sackings

Ching Cheong April 22, 2003
According to this article in Singapore's Straits Times, China's mishandling of the Sars epidemic is in part due to the communist country's heavy-handed control of its media and its proclivity for " putting its image above all else, including the lives of its people." Citing political corruption and ambition as the hallmark of China's communist party, the author...