Side effects may vary: lack of evidence prompts vigilance when considering contact-tracing apps
Mother’s Day is fast approaching. If you’re like me—lucky enough to have a loving mother who lives relatively nearby—the prospect of a hug-less Mother’s Day, thanks to COVID-19, is your current gloomy reality. Evidence tells us that hugs spread COVID-19, and that seniors are particularly susceptible to the worst of the disease. So, many of […]
Don’t let privacy concerns complicate necessary data sharing to combat public health threats
Health surveillance systems are key cornerstones to protecting populations from emerging public health threats. In Canada, these systems fall under shared responsibilities between local, federal, and provincial and territorial (FPT) agencies. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) creates the common elements to manage this system within a national framework to standardize data collection and […]
Interpreter injuries spike due to virtual Parliament, prompt calls for quality controls
With subpar equipment and spotty connectivity, Parliament’s virtual meetings have compromised the quality of interpretation and led to a rise in workplace injuries reported by interpreters, according to two groups representing parliamentary interpreters. Inconsistent audio and visual quality and poor practices from Parliamentarians and witnesses have made interpreters’ jobs more difficult since the House of Commons […]
Isolation tips: coping with long, annoying commercials
In this latest of my series of intermittent public service columns on how to cope with life in pandemic isolation, we’ll tackle the conundrum of how to manage confinement coexistence with Donald Trump. In our old-timey lives, when escape from the hourly onslaught of Trumpian nonsense was just that third trip to the store in […]
Tough questions, and no easy answers, for how best to bounce back from COVID-19
OTTAWA—To open or not to open? At what pace? What happens if we get it wrong? These questions on transitioning back to something resembling what we knew after COVID-19 are ones politicians and health officials across the country are asking themselves. Some political careers may be defined by the answers, particularly if it all goes […]
We need a smart approach to using tech in patient contact tracking during public health emergencies
Globally, the most effective way to flatten the coronavirus curve has been physical distancing. It slows the spread of the virus and ultimately leads to fewer deaths. In an ideal world, everyone would have the opportunity to practice physical distancing as prescribed by public health officials. Unfortunately, for many people, doing so can be challenging, […]
Feds haven’t consulted privacy commissioner on contact-tracing app details
Despite the first Canadian contact-tracing app, ABTraceTogether, launching in Alberta on May 1 and being downloaded by tens of thousands of residents, federal Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien’s office has not yet been contacted by the federal government on “the details of contacting tracing.” “We have had discussions with a number of federal departments and with […]
The Nobel for Trump? Why not the Booker Prize for fiction instead?
The recent roller coaster of American stock market performance, with a precipitous increase in market values coming during the same week as more than 30 million had Americans filed for unemployment, has starkly revealed the fiction of President Donald Trump and his congressional cheerleader’s contention that the economy’s fundamentals are strong. Nothing could be further […]
Government turned travel agency: inside Canada’s repatriation efforts
At the peak of Canada’s effort to repatriate tens of thousands of Canadians, Liberal MP Rob Oliphant’s consular responsibilities filled his inbox with 1,600-plus emails and pushed his work days past 15 hours as the go-between the government and MPs dealing with constituents in crisis abroad . For the last two months, as countries closed […]
As union members face COVID-19 pandemic ‘head on,’ PSAC calls for feds to return to bargaining table
With union members “facing the pandemic head on” at our borders, in federal penitentiaries, and by processing millions of financial support claims under tight timelines, the head of Canada’s largest federal public service union is calling for the federal government to return to the bargaining table to reach an elusive contract settlement for more than […]
