Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
New research suggests that the transmission of COVID-19 within a household could be more than 50 per cent and that children play a “important” role in its spread through the home.
The peer-reviewed study, published earlier this week in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, analyzed the transmission of COVID-19 in 180 homes in the Ottawa, Ont. area between September 2020 and October 2021, and found that after the first person in the home tested positive for COVID-19, 49.1 per cent of people in the same home would later test positive as well.
In all, 239 of the 487 people in the same household as someone with COVID-19 would later test positive for the virus.
Dr. Maala Bhatt, an associate professor of Pediatrics at the University of Ottawa and the study’s lead author, believes this study is a reminder that Canadians need to continue with the proper precautions.
“I know many want to ‘live with COVID’ and abandon the layers of protection that were previously mandated, but it’s important to be aware of the high transmissibility of this virus in closed, indoor settings, such as schools,” she said in a news release.
“Our most vulnerable and our youngest children who are not yet able to be vaccinated are still at risk for COVID infection.”
Maala also notes that this study was conducted before the emergence of the highly transmissible Omicron variant, meaning the transmission rate in the household is likely higher than this research shows.
“While we’re lucky hospitals aren’t currently overloaded, emergency departments are and positivity rates are on the rise, even amongst children,” Bhatt said.
“As significant COVID-19 transmission continues within households and throughout the community, it’s important to continue doing what you can to keep yourself and those around you safe – mask while indoors, wash your hands, get vaccinated with all the doses you are eligible for, stay home if you’re sick, and limit close contacts.”
While the study showed that adults were more likely to spread the virus to others in the home, the study stated that children were “were an important source of spread” and accounted for about a third of household transmission.
“The role of children in transmission warrants attention, since they are often asymptomatic or have mild symptoms,” the study noted.
“Addressing this gap in the literature would allow a more evidence-based approach to public health initiatives, given that COVID-19 pandemic control strategies have often affected the lives of children and youth, as well as negatively affecting their overall well-being.”
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.
Mookie Betts went 3 for 5, including a triple and an RBI single, as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Saturday.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”