Brad Wouters 🇨🇦
@bradwouters
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528
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Executive Vice-President, Science and Research, University Health Network and Senior Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.
Toronto
Joined September 2008
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Last Seen Profiles
BA.5 reaching 70% average this week in Toronto. Official 3rd wave of Omicron is here. Will peak in July/August. Mask and boost as warranted.
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The reprieve is over. Cases will rise significantly now in Ontario and Canada. Delta is coming for the unvaccinated and will spill over to other vulnerable groups. Get vaccinated. Help someone else get vaccinated.
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AZ vaccine sits in storage while wave 3 rages. Health Canada has reviewed the data and has kept its approval in place for its use in all ages. Canadian provinces should open up this option for Canadians who want it. This will save lives.
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Two things we got wrong are abundantly clear. Transmission occurs through aerosols and kids are primary vectors. It’s never been more obvious what’s needed. Kids are not vaccinated- their schools need to control aerosols come fall.
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Wastewater signals reaching January peak in Ontario (when masking, vaccine passports, and other major restrictions were in place). Ontario’s largest wave of infections is right now. You’re on your own.
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I had 3 major hopes to implement learning from the pandemic. 1) improve the air we breath, 2) normalize wearing masks when community infection levels are high, and 3) normalize regular rapid testing to keep people at home when they are infectious. Not much effort on any of these
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We are at the same stage when schools and other businesses reopened after wave 2. Then we ignored exponential growth of the UK variant in a background of declining cases. Now we appear ready to do the same- ignoring rise of B1.617.2-resistant to one dose immunity. Don’t do it.
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Today, everyone working and entering
@uhn
is vaccinated. Our primary value is that the needs of patients come first. Many thanks to the many people who got us to this point.
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The decision is to let Omicron run. It's misleading to say schools are safe and that your child won't get infected if they follow the rules. They will. The decision is based on the premise that we can't avoid infection and that consequences will be mild. We will find out soon
NEW: The Ministry of Education will be suspending reporting of COVID-19 cases in child care, according to a memo from the Assistant Deputy Minister.
"Further information will be shared shortly on reporting expectations of absences and program closures," the memo says.
#onted
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Two approaches to choose from:
1) Act now
✅deploy free at home rapid tests
✅accelerate boosters
✅access to better masks
✅improve ventilation
Or
2) wait until hospitals in crisis
✅shut everything down again
Time to choose
The discovery of the
#Omicron
variant here in Ontario is cause for concern, but we are planning and preparing for all scenarios.
The health and safety of all Ontarians is our top priority. We will take added measures if necessary.
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If you’re wondering why there are so many COVID cases in the NHL, NFL, and NBA it’s because they are testing. It’s not because there are more cases.
#FreeTheRATs
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When do we reach the point where Nobody should be asked to work without access to a vaccine and regular rapid testing. I think we are close.
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Not a science driven public health statement. Hospitals should be requiring 3rd doses that are proven to protect against infection and transmission. Our hospitals have vulnerable patients that can’t protect themselves.
Chief Medical Officer of Health says immunization requirements for colleges, universities and hospitals have served their purpose - he would like to see them gone March 1st - the day proof of vaccination no longer required to go to a restaurant etc
#onpoli
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I'm feeling positive for Canada. Time for a last push and we need everyone to do their part. Another 2 months and we will be through this.
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Only one country on this list moving backwards rather than forwards. Canada's spending on research and development is less today than 20 years ago. Research defines our future.
@KirstyDuncanMP
@JustinTrudeau
@cafreeland
@HealthCareCAN
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The $2.5B NIH increase is 2.8X the entire CIHR budget. Total NIH ($47.5B) is 54X the entire CIHR budget - 6X per capita. Canada needs to double tri-council budgets now and build a long term strategy for systematic investments.
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Canada’s first vaccine passport is in Manitoba. This is smart and I hope other provinces follow quickly.
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So the patio restaurants closed in Toronto. That should turn things around.
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Every province building their own registry and booking system. Their own data collection system. No coordination. No ability to learn from data at scale. Israel and UK already publishing on real world evidence with integrated research/clinical systems. We have a long way to go...
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70% BA.2 in Toronto this week
Covid hospitalizations in Ontario last Saturday: 613
Today: 707
Higher than
@COVIDSciOntario
predictions.
Time to resist our biases towards optimism and the status quo.
Let's change behaviour and policy, both to save lives and to help ensure people can work, learn and play.
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With lack of meaningful case data wastewater is the best indicator of nee infections. Clear evidence we are over the peak in Ontario.
Ottawa, Barrie, Orillia, Windsor have the most recent wastewater data. All declining!!
@brianlilley
@DrJacobsRad
@deonandan
@Billius27
@MikeHaddadMD
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Important changes and welcome increases to student scholarships and postdoctoral fellowships. Looks like Banting and Vanier are going away.
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Because those 9 diseases pose a much greater benefit/risk than COVID-19 or because we lack the leadership to make it happen?
Ontario won't add COVID-19 to list of nine diseases that elementary and secondary students must be immunized against: official
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There was no scenario ever presented where anyone could reasonably claim that vaccines were going to prevent the variant driven 3rd wave.
It is wonderful and a triumph that Canadians might be vaccinated earlier than expected. That does not somehow erase the tragedy of the thousands of Canadians whose lives might have been spared had Canada's early vaccine rollout been more robust
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Quebec has decided to try and slow the Omicron wave - Ontario is going to essentially let it run. Hospitals will be the readout here to measure the impact in terms of collateral damage due to both staffing and hospitalizations.
Could not be a bigger contrast between Quebec and Ontario announcements today. Legault himself speaking at length about all the issues (excellent communicator), curfew at 9pm enforced by police (fines in thousands), schools closed until Jan 17th, all theatres/restaurants closed.
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My turn on the
@UHN
front line screening at the door. Thanks
@Starbucks
and to my patient trainers.
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As infection spirals out of control towards 100,000 cases/day in the US (2 Wuhan totals/day) , Canada will need to further tighten border, flights, quarantine, transport, etc. Greatest risk now to mitigation going forward
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Canada owes a collective huge thank-you to
@CPHO_Canada
Theresa Tam. A leader working constantly to protect Canadians that saved thousands of lives.
Canada’s chief public health officer fought off online attacks as the face of Canada's
#COVID19
response. Now, Theresa Tam reveals just what kind of toll that took on her, by
@R_SPatel
via
@torontostar
#infodemic
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The ICU still reflects infections that happened 2 weeks ago. The next four weeks will be unlike anything seen before. ICU numbers are going to 700. This was entirely predictable and modelled for months.
This is not normal. This is not a solution. This is out of control. It's only a question of how bad the situation will be allowed to get before there is a stay-at-home order and real lockdown. And that's a terrible question to ponder.
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Another federal budget and absolutely nothing for TRI-council funding of research in Canada. Falling hopelessly behind our peers. No vision and no ambition after perhaps the most obvious demonstration of the importance of investment in research in history.
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Rapid testing is public health. Test to protect others. It should be free and those who do it should be rewarded and thanked.
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15% today. On track for 10,000 cases of Omicron per day in Ontario by end of December
At this rate, Omicron will be ~100% of new cases in the Greater Toronto Area by Christmas Day.
#NaughtyOrNice
🎄
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🇨🇦 will catch 🇺🇸 in less than a week. 🇬🇧 - we are coming for you next.
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UK speeding up second doses. We should address our over 70 ASAP.
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Over 2% of Americans - more than 4.5M got a vaccine today. Wow.
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Entry into the ICU occurs 10-15 days after infection. These numbers reflect case numbers from 1-2 weeks ago. They have almost doubled since that time. We are in big trouble.
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And there it is- first approved vaccine against COVID-19 in Canada
@UHN
! 20,000,000 to go
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This is way outside of NACI jurisdiction. There are no data. Nobody in the world has been 4 months between doses. These are RNA vaccines never used before. We should use evidence to make decisions. Canada conducting a population level experiment.
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Doctor is Dr. Kali Barrett. She works on the front line. Please listen to her. Don’t be distracted by vaccination rollout issues. Vaccines are not going to stop this third wave. We are already in big trouble and need public health controls now.
Doctor says Ontario needs to do more now to stop 3rd wave
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Made the very difficult decision today to shut down lab and non-essential clinical research for 3 weeks of our 1100 scientists and their groups
@UHN
. An incredible group that will step back for the benefit of our patients, staff, and community.
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Thanks
@JustinTrudeau
@cafreeland
@NavdeepSBains
@KirstyDuncanMP
@PattyHajdu
for investing in the future of Canada’s hospital-based research sector and securing jobs
@UHN
@UHN_Research
.
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Tomorrow is one week. UK have announced intention to provide 3rd doses to everyone 18+ and 3 months post 2nd dose by end of December and have already made free rapid tests available to everyone. We need to move now on both to have any impact in mitigating Omicron wave.
Two approaches to choose from:
1) Act now
✅deploy free at home rapid tests
✅accelerate boosters
✅access to better masks
✅improve ventilation
Or
2) wait until hospitals in crisis
✅shut everything down again
Time to choose
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UHN will require that unvaccinated employees test negative for COVID-19 before arriving at work |
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The Canadian federal budget provided no increase for
@CIHR_IRSC
this year while labs face inflation of 10%. Canada is falling further behind. As a comparator the top NIH funded University in the US receives funding equivalent to the entire CIHR budget.
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Thank you to Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Edinburgh for supporting
@UHN
and our community of supporters
@uhnfoundation
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Today
@uhn
announced additional so changes to our COVID-19 vaccination policy making vaccination mandatory for all existing and new staff. This decision is driven by the needs of our patients, the protection of our staff, and our understanding of the science.
Time to take the next steps to do everything we can to protect vulnerable patients and staff as we enter the next wave. ��
@UHN
considers leave of absence and terminations for unvaccinated staff.
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There is no evidence that RATs have ‘lost sensitivity’ to the detection of virus. What’s happening is that vaccinated individuals have symptoms earlier and at lower viral levels. They are extraordinarily good at detecting cases when they are at highest risk of transmitting.
(8/11) Rapid antigen tests have lost some of their sensitivity. At least two negative tests using proper sampling (mouth, throat, and nose) separated by at least 24 hours are needed to be sure that an individual is not infected.
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England continues to show us what’s next. B1.617.2 will become dominant bin Canada too. And we remain more at risk than the UK because one dose immunity is much less effective against this variant. We need a blitz of 2nd doses to protect the most vulnerable.
B.1.617.2 is now dominant in almost every region of England.
Even NE and Yorks are catching up very fast. 3/7
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Calling on
@JustinTrudeau
@Bill_Morneau
@NavdeepSBains
@cafreeland
Canada’s research sector at extreme risk| The Star
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Very strong evidence that we need to open up 2nd doses now to >65. Mortality risk significant after 1 dose and higher than those getting 1st dose now. Also some evidence that protection waning aft 70 days. Open it up!
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Our ambition is so low. So weak. Let’s do nothing
2) False negatives on testing once may also not keep people out of society as we would like, plus pre-symptomatic transmission. So in all likelihood, the number of folks who are truly testing and isolating for their full infectious period (outside of healthcare) is small already
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And 🇨🇦...
CIHR Budget = $1Billion
CAN GDP = $1.7 Trillion+
Share of GDP = 0.06%....
Underinvesting only our future.
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Such a lack of respect for one of the greatest Canadians in history.
@TerryFoxCanada
The contrast between Terry Fox and his quest to help others could not be greater than the selfish group in Ottawa responsible for this.
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Today we remember the massacre of 14 young women on Dec. 6th 1989, an act driven by misogynistic hate. They were killed because they were women and women in STEM. Today I am reflecting on the work that we all must do to address the many barriers that remain for women in society.
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@DFisman
33% in the SPARSEQ run today in Toronto. Will be dominant by Wednesday. Omicron cases doubling every 3 days - as many cases today as seen up until now. Get ready for cases to take off
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The scramble is going to be tough on parents and families- this should have been done last week by the province. But kudos to Peel and Lawrence Loh. This is the right thing to do. Toronto should follow suit
NEW: Peel public health officials closing all schools in Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga for 2 weeks effective tomorrow, and moving to remote learning only.
Section 22 order has been issued under the Ontario Health Protection and Promotion Act.
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Research doesn't back vaccine dose delay for seniors, Canada's chief science adviser says
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It’s already here. Growing exponentially but hidden from sight because we are not looking. We will only see it when it’s too late. It does not have to be this way. Test, sequence, trace, isolate, vaccinate.
@cdavidnaylor
@cafreeland
@JustinTrudeau
@fordnation
Exponential increases in the pandemic with variant virus strains in UK, Ireland. I've never seen an epidemic curve like this, and the curve is with lockdown. If the variant becomes common the US, it's close to a worst-case scenario, with a baseline of full hospitals.
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Pleased to participate in
#Coalition4CdnResearch
press conference with all Canadian advocacy groups coming together to call on the federal government to invest in research.
@cafreeland
@KirstyDuncanMP
@JustinTrudeau
"It's past time for the government to make a major investment in Canadian research." - Dr. Brad Wouters, Executive VP Science & Research at
@UHN
, representing
@HealthCareCAN
, and a Research Canada Board Director
Read
#Coalition4CdnResearch
's open letter:
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Cancer, transplant patients and others standing at the back of the line while hospitals care for COVID patients now face a hostile environment of anti-vax protestors who aim to disrupt their access to care sr Toronto’s important hospitals. Who’s keeping the pandemic going?
Toronto police advise hospital workers not to wear scrubs to work this weekend ahead of planned anti-vaccine trucker protest in downtown
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🇨🇦 Canada please get ready. We’ve had 3 practice rounds. Watch what’s happening. We are extremely vulnerable
Edinburgh
#s
not looking great. Probably bc of increased mixing, new variant (B.1617), loads of tourists & still majority of people not fully vaccinated. Testing, supported isolation, vaccinations & avoiding risky settings (crowded, indoor, poorly ventilated) are tools we have.
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It’s time to call it Canada 🇨🇦. Time to mask everyone.
@fordnation
@CPHO_Canada
@PattyHajdu
@cafreeland
. Part of coming back to work. Easy to drop later. Impossible to change after the fact.
#COVID19
Important new study demonstrates why
#Masks4All
implementation is so urgent in this
#coronavirus
pandemic
“My mask protects you; your mask protects me.”
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Thank you to our anonymous Chinese-Canadian philanthropist for donating 20,000 N95 masks to
@UHN
frontline staff! Thanks to Dr. Gang Zheng
@ganglabstyle
, MP
@AliEhsassi
,
@AirCanada
@ScottBurtney
, Tim Wong and Danie Wong for making it happen. →
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Hear hear. Let’s normalize expectations. Everyone working with the public should be vaccinated. Mandates make this self evident.
Conversely, when institutions refuse to mandate vaccines, they raise more questions, elevate ambiguity and hesitancy among the people who are already uncertain. So rather than giving vaccine-hesitant people space to come around, they prompt them to wait and deliberate more. 10)
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Fantastic paper. Transmission peaks before symptoms. Control requires much more reliance on asymptomatic testing and effective contact tracing. This is where all are effort should be- particularly in those populations at highest risk.
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Today I pulled our two teenagers out of back to school next week. We are privileged to be able to do it. But convinced it’s not safe to go back and just a matter of time and cases before we shut down again.
They are not. This battle is over without a fight. Doors wide open.
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Toronto is already a powerhouse in life sciences research because of the commitment of UofT,
@UHN
,
@SickKidsNews
,
@CAMHnews
,
@Sunnybrook
,
@UnityHealthTO
and other academic medical centres. Canadian government needs to step up its ambition and invest
University of Toronto ranks only behind Harvard in health sciences research
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School cases now higher than peak in December before the school closure. And these cases include a large percentage of more infectious variants. What happens in the next two weeks?
This is the number of active student cases in schools by date.
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This 💌 Valentine’s Day
@uhn
we are showing some love for postdoctoral researchers - part of the lifeblood of research! 3 new salary scales with minimums starting at 50K, 60K, and 70K. Some flexibility for our PIs but a good start to properly recognize
@uhntrainees
@UHNPostdocs
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We are heading into another major wave in Ontario. We should be using boosters as widely as possible and opening vaccination to kids now. There are 17,000 preventable deaths in Ontario in the unvaccinated alone. Where is the urgency?
Agree w/
@EricTopol
. I just don't get "vaccine wasn't designed to prevent infections" line. If vax used to prevent 95% of infectns, then wanes, but protection can be restored via safe/cheap boost (not only prevents cases/Long Covid–it also keeps community safer), why NOT do that?
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For some context this is about the total that Canada has spent on supporting health research
@CIHR_IRSC
over the past 20 years. Canada does not lack the $ to support research- it lacks the seriousness and ambition to compete globally.
Ottawa's deal to lure VW will cost $16.3B — $3B more than publicly announced, estimates show. What does it all mean with Stellantis talks still on? Latest from me and
@robertbenzie
here: via
@torontostar
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Lutke and ‘wife’ - seriously
@globeandmail
?? Her name is Fiona McKean and she is founder and chair of the foundation that made this generous donation.
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It is clearly of no benefit when not being used. Lets wait and see what happens when classrooms start closing next week
Moore says rapid testing is a burden and really of no benefit. 🙃🙃🙃Welcome to Ontario, folks.
Cost-benefit are out of alignment he babbles.
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🇨🇦? A reinvestment in research is critical for the future of Canada. Ireland gets it. Watch what happens in the US next year. Time to change our ambition.
@JustinTrudeau
@cafreeland
@PattyHajdu
@CFHI_FCASS
Republic of Ireland aiming to massively increase its recruitment of top international scientists under ambitious plans by main science funder to almost double research spending by 2025 via
@jgro_the
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On to 2nd doses. Here we go. Huge numbers of vaccines arriving this week and next. 5 weeks to the top of the world.
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Hello 🇨🇦! Time to reset our ambition level and invest in Canada’s future!. We are falling dangerously behind.
@JustinTrudeau
@cafreeland
@PattyHajdu
@FP_Champagne
Biden proposes $250 billion investment in research
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?? This is the advice for Canadians as we head into a 3rd wave with more transmissible variants? Please IGNORE and upgrade your mask.
Whenever possible, choose a reusable non-medical
#Mask
to cut down on plastic waste. When well-constructed and properly worn, it can help to protect you, those around you, and the
#Environment
. How to make one:
#ProtectNature
#COVID19
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Rapid tests are the “Am I infectious now?” test. Not “will I be infectious tomorrow? or was I infectious last week?.
Paging every single person thinking about rapid tests and how to use them most effectively. From
@alanmcn1
who has an incredible amount of experience of how they can work, and not work, in the real world
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Data would be even better than one hospitals estimate.
Dr. Kieran Moore says one Ontario hospital estimated around 50% of its COVID-19 cases are incidental (i.e. someone comes in for another matter and happens to test positive)
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“ Trudeau is also expected today to announce financial support to prevent the threatened layoffs of up to 15,000 researchers at hospital-based research institutes who, due to a technicality, don't qualify for the wage subsidy.”
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Two weeks ago packed classrooms were not considered a problem. Now a stroll in the park is off limits?. You wonder why the public has lost trust in its leaders. Stay safe
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B.C. to offer COVID vaccine boosters for all in ‘precedent-setting’ move -
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B1.351 is here in Canada too. We can identify every case and do the tracing necessary to prevent its spread if we have the ambition to do so. Probably too late for B1.1.7 but need to act on B1.351 now.
South Africa🇿🇦halts use of
@AstraZeneca
vaccine after it is found not to prevent the
#coronavirus
variant
#B1351
(which is rampant in the country) from causing mild or moderate disease via
@nytimes
#COVID19
#vaccination
#GlobalHealth
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In Canada we are waiting for data to tell us to move away from an unproven vaccination schedule back to one that has been shown effective in clinical trials.
Mounting evidence demonstrating that a single dose of an mRNA
#COVID19
vaccine does not elicit enough of an immune response in those with immunocompromised states, in this case, organ transplant recipients.
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Feds announce up to $450 million in aid for research, after sector warned of up to 15,000 job losses - iPolitics
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19 employees contract COVID-19 after outbreak at Public Health Ontario's Toronto laboratory via
@CTVToronto
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Very excited to support significant increases in graduate student support
@uoftmedicine
and for graduate students
@uhn
.
@uhn
is also committed to new increases for postdoctoral researchers
@UHNPostdocs
- stay tuned.
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Calling on
@JustinTrudeau
@cafreeland
@NavdeepSBains
@PattyHajdu
. Our research community is at risk at a time when we all recognize how much we need it.
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So we all have a role. Get cases as low as possible over the next two months. Build approaches to reach out and get as many Canadians vaccinated as possible. We have all the tools. Forget the partisanship false debates. Time for Canada to come together on this one.
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Congratulations
@FourSeasons
@FSToronto
would like to see you match this offer. 🇨🇦 home. Challenge to
@MarriottBonvoy
@HiltonHotels
to do the same. This is needed for HCW to protect themselves and their families
@UHN
@KevinSmithUHN
The Four Seasons Hotel on 57th Street will provide FREE lodging to doctors, nurses & medical personnel currently working to respond to the
#COVID19
pandemic.
Thank you
@FourSeasons
.
The first of many hotels we hope will make their rooms available.
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Wow! The amazing philanthropist Donald K Johnson announces a historic $50M gift to the
@uhnfoundation
to support the Donald K Johnson Eye Institute
@KrembilRI
@UHN
.
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AZ data looks great. They need to fire their entire communications team.
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These tests detect virus. There is no evidence to suggest they are less effective at picking up people when they are most infectious with Omicron. They don’t measure symptoms. This study has been misinterpreted and we should continue to use rapid tests to slow Omicron.
The new data suggests the sensitivity of rapid antigen tests drops to about 50 per cent on average when it comes to detecting early onset cases of Omicron when carriers are most infectious.
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