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Month: October 2021

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Rapid tests are a game changer, Doug Ford says. Public Health Ontario’s head of microbiology has a very different view

Oct 3, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Premier Doug Ford used the same term five times on Tuesday to describe the rapid tests the province is rolling out across Ontario: “game changer.”

The health experts tasked with advising government on their use, however, describe these tests very differently: “inferior,” “anything but game changers,” and — in private discussions, by one of the province’s top testing experts — “sh—y.”

These experts say the rapid tests could be useful in specific circumstances. But so far there is patchy evidence on how best to deploy them, and the tests come with serious potential harms, including high volumes of false results compared to the gold-standard laboratory tests — a particularly risky feature in vulnerable settings like nursing homes.

“There is no evident place where they are really helpful,” says Dr. Allison McGeer, an infectious disease specialist at Sinai Health System who consulted on the rapid-test plan. “There are a bunch of places where they may well be helpful, but they have a significant number of disadvantages, and a significant number of logistical challenges.”

Ford and Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott announced Tuesday that the province had received 1.2 million “Panbio” rapid antigen tests and 98,000 “ID Now” tests manufactured by U.S.-based Abbott and purchased by the federal government. Rapid antigen tests like Panbio have been particularly hyped in recent months: they work like a pregnancy test and can generate results in under 15 minutes.

“We’ve been getting these tests as quickly as we can to the front lines of our health-care system,” Ford said Tuesday. “These tests right here, folks, are a game changer.”

In discussions with other experts and officials recently, Dr. Vanessa Allen, Public Health Ontario’s chief of microbiology and laboratory science, described the Panbio test as “sh—y,” the Star has learned.

Asked Thursday why she used that word, Allen said “my experience was that there is an incredible enthusiasm about the use of these tests.”

“Those were private conversations,” she added. “But I think really the message that I wanted to relay is that they do not perform the same as lab-based tests, and … we don’t have a lot of real data about their actual benefit. I think it’s incumbent on us to rapidly learn how they might be useful. But I think there are some risks.”

The two rapid tests use different technology, and the province is deploying them in different settings.

ID Now is a molecular test that detects the virus’s genetic material. The device works like a small, portable lab, generating results from nasal, nasopharyngeal or throat swabs in 15 minutes. The province said Tuesday that ID Now tests would be sent to hospitals and assessment centres in rural and remote areas, and used in “early outbreak investigations in hotspot regions.”

Panbio is an antigen test that detects viral proteins. It works like a pregnancy test, generates results in 15 minutes, and can only be used with nasopharyngeal swabs. Panbio tests have been rolled out for screening in nursing homes and other workplaces, including TD Bank, Air Canada, two gold mines, and three film and TV productions. Six long-term-care operators are receiving the rapid tests to “help inform future deployment across the sector,” according to the health ministry.

A spokesperson for Abbott cited evaluations showing that both tests are more than 95 per cent and up to 99.8 per cent accurate in accurately identifying or excluding infections in people within seven days of symptom onset.

“Both Panbio and ID NOW have both been studied extensively and have demonstrated strong performance,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “They are proving to be valuable tools in slowing the spread of the virus.”

Experts, however, cautioned that the real-world accuracy of rapid tests often differs from the settings in which they are evaluated.

“The history of rapid tests is that they perform much better in the controlled circumstances of a laboratory than they do when you take them out into the field. That’s a chronic problem,” said McGeer, a trained microbiologist.

Both McGeer and Allen cited preliminary data collected by Toronto researchers that found rapid antigen tests missed more than half of cases in a long-term-care-home outbreak. That study was small and needs to be expanded, Allen says. But the preliminary data, along with studies in other jurisdictions that showed rapid antigen tests missing between 15 and 30 per cent of infections, gave Ontario experts pause about recommending Panbio in similar contexts.

“I think we owe and have a responsibility to offer the highest standard of care — or testing, in this case — to long-term care,” Allen said. “It’s not to say antigen testing couldn’t have an adjunctive role, but we need to make sure that’s an adjunctive role.”

Researchers believe that the speed of rapid antigen tests can make up for their lower accuracy, because higher volumes of people can be tested more frequently. These devices are also most accurate when people are most infectious — the critical period to identify and isolate cases. Proponents have argued that if deployed on a wide enough scale, rapid antigen testing would be more effective than slower, more accurate lab-based PCR testing, and some modelling studies back that up.

Ontario’s deployment of rapid antigen tests reflects that thinking, putting Panbio in the hands of employers and LTC operators for regular screening, rather than outbreak management. They may be useful in that role, the experts who advised the province said — but they need to be closely evaluated, and the potential harms carefully mitigated.

False negatives — missing a positive case — could have obviously devastating consequences in long-term care, where residents are acutely vulnerable to severe disease and where almost two-thirds of Ontario’s COVID deaths have occurred. But false positives — inaccurately flagging a positive case — can also have dire consequences, says Dr. Samir Sinha, another expert who provided advice.

With one positive, “you lock down an entire unit. You’re affecting 32 people where 70 per cent of them have dementia, for example, and you’re completely disrupting their care, their routine. That actually increases the entire staff burden.” And in already understaffed homes, Sinha added, needlessly quarantining staff who aren’t actually positive, even for just a few days while waiting for a lab-test confirmation, can have profound impacts.

ID Now, the portable molecular tests, have the most potential in remote settings where getting results back from the lab can take days — in these contexts, some information is better than no information, experts said. But still, Health Canada mandates that both tests are performed by regulated health professionals — a workforce already stretched thin in many places — and requires training, oversight and evaluation. Each device can only process three to four swabs an hour, so they have volume limits, too.

Ontario’s rapid tests “are anything but game changers,” said Sinha, director of geriatrics at Sinai Health and the University Health Network.

“I think these things have been so politicized,” he added. “People are just so desperate to find quick and easy fixes here.”

Kate Allen is a Toronto-based reporter covering science and technology for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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A study’s surprising revelation about which students are faring better under the pandemic

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

A new study out of the University of Toronto revealed surprising results, researchers say, on how students’ mental health has fared during COVID-19 and under the pandemic-mandated campus shutdown earlier this year.

The study, published in early September in the journal Canadian Psychology, revealed that U of T students with mental health concerns are faring similarly, or better, under the than they were a year ago.

But students who have no history of mental health issues reporting a higher level of depressive symptoms during the pandemic than they had previously.

Chloe Hamza, assistant professor in the Department of Applied Psychology and lead author , said the findings went against her expectation.

“We expected that students with pre-existing mental health concerns would be the ones who are most vulnerable to the psychological impacts of COVID-19,” Hamza said.

Instead, she said it was students who were faring well academically and socially that suffered more when the pandemic hit.

Students who were already struggling, Hamza added, said they were dealing with feelings of loneliness and isolation before the pandemic began. As a result, those students with pre-existing mental health conditions reported lower levels of academic alienation and friendship problems under lockdown.

They also reported slightly decreased perceived stress and feelings of being a burden.

Hamza said this is likely due to the reduction in academic, work or other time commitments under lockdown, which may have made life a little bit more manageable for those who were already having a hard time.

But students without pre-existing mental health conditions reported higher rates of alcohol consumption and depressive symptoms compared to last year as a result of the pandemic, prompting Hamza’s study to conclude there was a link between social isolation and worsening mental health among university students — the study states that “increasing social mistreatment” led to greater psychological distress among students.

Researchers surveyed round 730 second-year University of Toronto students in May. Those students were already surveyed about their mental health a year prior in 2019, and researchers compared the recent findings to those from last year to identify how students’ levels of stress and anxiety have changed overtime.

The University of Toronto, like the majority of universities and colleges across Canada, cancelled in-class sessions since March 13, and students are still learning virtually. Most big social events like Fall Orientation or Thanksgiving dinners have been cancelled and are being held online, redefining what once were pivotal aspects of university and college social life.

Little is still known through research about how students are handling this sudden shift to their daily reality. But Hamza’s study is one of the first looks at how students’ mental health in Canada is changing in light of the pandemic — a young cohort in an age group that has also as major cities in Canada experience a second wave.

Julia Pereira, president of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance, which represents around 150,000 students in the province, said university students have felt immense pressure since the pandemic began. Academically, Pereira said they’re worried about excelling in this new online learning environment. As for their social life, she said many students profoundly miss the physical campus community.

“Students are used to coming back, starting school and being surrounded by their friends and their peers and meeting with their professors one on one,” Pereira said. “I think that they’re missing that social interaction.”

Pereira, who also serves as vice-president at Wilfrid Laurier University’s student union, said many student leaders and universities across the province have tried to replicate some of these social experiences online.

But “unfortunately,” she added, “these online experiences aren’t going to completely substitute that social aspect of university that students really value.”

Hamza said her study’s findings underscore how important socialization is to post-secondary students, and that they’re a cohort that needs to be further supported by their community. She added the rise in COVID-19 cases among youth could be driven by the need of this young cohort to build connections and hang out with peers.

“Emerging adulthood is this period where there is an increased need for affiliation,” Hamza said. “So how do we find ways to support young adults in their affiliated needs, while also adhering to public health recommendations? I think that’s something we need to think about.”

But she said it’s important to also realize students are more vulnerable to spread of the virus because they also often live in shared housing, and may not have the luxury to safely isolate should they fall ill.

While Hamza’s study offers a glimpse of how students were feeling in May, a few months after lockdown, Marija Padjen, director of the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health, said students are likely still feeling the impact of COVID-19 on their mental health and will be for months to come as the pandemic continues to rage.

It is why she emphasized a message of hope and taking care of oneself as daily life continues to be disrupted: “How do we make sure we’re exercising, we’re getting sleep, that we are reaching out to supports that have been put into place, both within our campuses, but also within our country?” Padjen asked.

Padjen added students who are struggling should reach out to mental health resources like , a 24/7 helpline for post-secondary students in Ontario or Nova Scotia, or , a free online program that is designed to help youth manage a low mood, mild to moderate depression and anxiety, as well as stress or worry.

Even “within the social distancing realm,” Padjen said, “there is still the capability and the capacity for us to reach out and connect to each other.”

Nadine Yousif is a Toronto-based reporter for the Star covering mental health. Her reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. Follow her on Twitter:

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Swish, gargle, spit: Behold the new, kid-friendly COVID-19 test

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

HALIFAX—We all inherently know it: Swish-gargle-spit is much better than a stick up the nose.

If you’re a kid, and you need to get tested for in Halifax, at least you’ll have that option now.

If you’re an adult … well, for the time being, it looks like you get the shaft.

The IWK Health Centre in Halifax, one of the country’s major pediatric hospitals, began Wednesday to roll out a pilot project in which the nasal swab test for COVID-19 is replaced with one called — in technical terms — the Gargle-Swish test.

The patient swishes five millilitres of saline in their mouth for five seconds, then tilts their head back and gargles for five more. They repeat that process two more times, then spit it all out into a cup.

Done. Thirty seconds all told, and no stick up the nose. No fuss, no mess — unless you lack an aptitude for gargling. The cup goes off to the lab, and the results come back in 72 hours.

The new test is reportedly 98 per cent sensitive for COVID-19, which puts it on par with the nasal swab test.

Unfortunately, for the foreseeable future, the test is only available to children ages four to 18. Only two of these pilot projects exist — the first at the BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, the second in Halifax at the IWK — so resources are limited and are being prioritized for children.

“We started this morning, and it’s been resoundingly positive, both from the staff and from the patients as well,” said Joanne Gallant, clinical leader of the primary assessment clinic at the IWK. “We had a patient who had previously had the nasal swab, and had come in for the gargle. And he left with a big smile on his face and said it was great.”

Gallant said research has shown that every health-care interaction a child has early on has an impact on their future health interactions.

In this case, Gallant believes, there will be shorter-term benefits, too. With schools back in session and health guidelines suggesting a coronavirus test if children display symptoms of fever or cold, the numbers of children who need to be tested has increased.

“We’re also hoping that it’s going to increase the rates at which people are willing to come in, because all of these (coronavirus) tests are based on self-reporting.

“So if somebody had the swish-and-gargle test, and it went very well — which is what we’re seeing — they were hoping that, you know, in a couple of months, if they have another cold, they wouldn’t hesitate in filling out that form and coming back for another test.”

For Sara Laffin, that seems plausible.

Laffin, a nurse at the IWK who administers some of the swish-and-gargle tests, also has two children of her own, a seven-year-old girl, Penny, and a five-year-old boy, Mickey.

She said although children are more resilient than adults think, there’s still a measure of apprehension about the nasal swab test.

“I think it’s quite vulnerable having another human putting a swab up your nose. It can be quite scary for kids and cause a lot of anxiety in some children just thinking about it. Not necessarily the procedure itself, but leading up to the procedure can be quite scary,” she said.

But she’s tried the new swish-and-gargle test on her own children, with positive results.

“They both thought it was fun and easy, were the two words they used to describe it, and, ‘It wasn’t that bad,’ was what Penny had said.”

Steve McKinley is a Halifax-based reporter for the Star. Follow him on Twitter:

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ATV driver faces fine for riding on Springwater road with 2-year-old passenger

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

An ATV driver riding along a Springwater road faces a fine after police stopped an adult with a two-year-old passenger on the back on Oct. 25.

The ATV driver was pulled over during a patrol of Simcoe County Forest trails by OPP officers and Central Ontario ATV club trail wardens.

Riding an ATV on a highway with a child under age eight as a passenger carries a $325 fine under the Highway Traffic Act.

Police and trail wardens were also able to help a 33-year-old woman who had injured her arm when she crashed her dirt bike on one of the trails. She was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

Four ATV drivers were fined $215 each for not having the required $103 permits to use trails designated for off-road use. Riding in undesignated areas also carries a $215 fine.

Trail permits can be purchased from OFATV and OFTR. For details, refer to or call .

 

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Simcoe Muskoka health unit to provide immunizations, after school clinics cancelled

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

With school clinics cancelled, immunizations for Grade 8 students who missed Grade 7 vaccines due to COVID-19, are now being offered by appointment by the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU).

“It’s important that students complete the immunization series for Hepatitis B (Hep B) and Human Papillomavirus (HPV),” said Dr. Colin Lee, associate medical officer of health for SMDHU. “They need both doses of each vaccine for the best protection against these diseases.”

Clinics begin the week of Nov. 2 in health-unit offices across Simcoe Muskoka, one to two days a week as needed through to the spring. It’s estimated upwards of 2,200 students will need to be immunized.

School immunization clinics will not be held during the 2020/2021 school year due to COVID-19. Instead, they will be offered for both Grade 7 and 8 students in the 2021/22 school year.

To book an appointment, call Health Connection at or ext. 8827, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Or visit.


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Provincewide Alert Ready test scheduled for Nov. 25

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Mobile phones, radios and televisions across Ontario will ring out with the Alert Ready alarm at 12:55 p.m. on Nov. 25 as Canada’s public alerting system undergoes a nation-wide routine test.

Pelmorex — the company that developed Alert Ready in collaboration with federal, provincial and territorial government agencies, broadcasters and wireless service providers — said tests are an opportunity to improve the performance and reliability of the system and ensure it operates the way it should in the event of a real, life-threatening emergency. 

Alert Ready was launched in 2015 to deliver urgent and potentially life-saving alerts to Canadians about emergencies such as tornadoes, flooding, fires and child abductions. So far in 2020, Ontario has received 78 alerts, including nine for civil emergencies, two for radiological hazards, five Amber alerts, 60 tornado warnings and two wildfire warnings.

“Pelmorex receives alerts from authorized alert issuers who consist of provincial, territorial and federal authorities, and makes those alerts available to alert distributors, which include television, radio, satellite, cable and wireless service providers,” Martin Belanger, director of public alerting at Pelmorex, said in a media release.

Because it is considered an essential and life-saving service, Ontarians, like everyone else in Canada, do not have the ability to opt-out of Alert Ready.

For more information, visit . To fill out a survey on Nov. 25 to indicate whether or not you received the alert, visit .

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Feel like you’ve aged a decade in 2020? The stress of COVID-19 may actually be adding extra years to your birth age

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Taking care of an infant while juggling work as a freelance writer would be stressful enough in a normal year. Add in the additional stress of the , and 39-year-old Ayano Hodouchi Dempsey feels much older.

“I feel old physically — backaches and stuff. And by the time my baby is in bed at 7:30 pm, I feel ready to go to bed myself!” she said.

Although Dempsey feels lucky to live in northwestern Ontario, where cases are relatively low, her extended family lives elsewhere and COVID-19 restrictions mean she hasn’t received the kind of support she would have normally.

People as young as in their twenties have told the Star they were initially shocked to discover streaks of grey in their hair, but once they thought more about it, they weren’t surprised.

A wide range of has shown that stress not only manifests in physical signs like greying hair, weight gain and body aches, extended stress can accelerate aging on a cellular level, by shortening the length of each DNA strand.

And when chronic depression is left untreated, cells of the immune system can change to make people more prone to diseases typically associated with old age, including heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis and stroke, according to by a team of scientists at University of California San Francisco.

“I have had greying hair, lessened sleep and anxiety, back spasms from sitting, and migraines from (teaching) online Zoom classes. This is pretty normal among my social network,” says Peter, a 34-year-old university instructor in Montreal who requested anonymity because of concerns over job security.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Quebec has been one of the hardest-hit provinces. But cases have surged across Canada as several provinces smashed daily infection records and the nationwide tally crested 4,000 on Sunday.

Peter has virtually spent the entire year in lockdown, and he knows that stress and isolation has taken a physical toll.

“I have only seen friends seven times during the entire year. I am unable to see my family as they live in a COVID hot zone in the United States. I have tried to be as productive as possible, but my productivity on projects has dramatically declined.

“There is nowhere to go, nothing to really do, nothing to plan for or look forward to,” he said.

The financial realities of the pandemic means that people are often well aware that their physical and mental health are suffering but feel a lack of control over their circumstances.

“I moved into a basement suite after we lost our house, right before COVID-19 hit, and it’s extremely dark. My sleep habits are pretty bad … and I’m having trouble focusing on work when I can’t go to cafes,” says Victoria Campbell, who is low-income and lives with a pre-existing disability.

“Housing is a struggle, and a major source of stress,” she told the Star. She had to cancel a gym membership because the uncertainty of the pandemic makes it unreasonable to pay an upfront fee. Instead, she swims laps at a pool, but has still gained weight.

On the other hand, Campbell suddenly feels less alone with her challenges because issues she has struggled with for years are suddenly much more common.

“It’s the first time in recent history that everyone has been part of the same anxiety cycle for such a protracted period of time,” she said.

This is all very concerning for Steve Joordens, a professor of psychology at University of Toronto Scarborough.

“Our stress response evolved to help us deal with so-called acute threats, threats like the emergence of a predator from the bushes. When that happens our body enters ‘fight or flee mode.’ The hormone cortisol is secreted causing our heart and lungs to work faster.”

“This reaction becomes a problem when a threat is chronic, when you can’t fight it, can’t flee it, and it just won’t go away,” Joordens told the Star.

When this happens, people get certain symptoms like fatigue, difficulty thinking through complex thoughts, greying hair and weight gain.

“Perhaps most concerning is a negative impact on our immune system. That is, we become more susceptible to the virus,” he said.

Is there anything we can do to lessen the stress and give our immune systems a fighting chance?

For one, if you’re noticing signs of aging beyond your time, don’t immediately assume that the culprit is stress.

“The first thing to do is go to a family doctor to at least get some routine examinations to rule out physical reasons why you’re experiencing symptoms,” says Vincent Agyapong, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Alberta.

“After that’s done, it’s reasonable to assume you are experiencing psychosomatic symptoms, so it’s good to seek mental health support … such as 24-hour hotlines offered for free by many provincial governments,” he said.

It might be easier said than done, but the key to taking care of yourself lies in taking it day by day.

Nobody has control over what happens in the future. But we can control what we do today. So have a plan each day that includes things that help your mental and physical health, Agyapong said.

For 54-year-old Allyson Barry, who has lived through years of traumatic events from abusive relationships that left her in “survival mode,” the resiliency she has gained through making it through to today has given her the perspective to weather the anxiety of the ongoing pandemic.

A year ago, Barry escaped homelessness only through the help of family and friends. She now works for the WISH Drop-in Centre, which supports the health and well-being of women who are involved in Vancouver’s street-based sex trade.

Now, Barry’s friends and family turn to her for support.

She tells them: “What happens during and after this pandemic does not rely upon what the government does, what the medical community does, or even what our neighbour does. It is all about you and only you. How you choose to proceed and see things is what will happen and what the outcome will be.”

“I know the bitterness and desire to lash out, I also know the importance of looking within myself and taking the steps to change those destructive feelings,” Barry told the Star.

She suggests people say to themselves: “This trial has zero bearing on my happiness or my future. My future and my happiness is up to me.”

With files from The Canadian Press

Joanna Chiu is a Vancouver-based reporter covering both Canada-China relations and current affairs on the West Coast for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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‘We have to be in it together:’ Wasaga-area municipalities, businesses push ‘shop local’ message

Oct 1, 2021 , , , , by shlf

It’s a good time to think outside the big-box and online stores.

While the temptation might be to head online for holiday shopping and avoid the headache of navigating stores in the midst of a pandemic, area municipalities and businesses urge the community to shop locally.

The year “2020 has been a rough ride for many folks, and we’re not through the thick of it,” said Tyler King, Wasaga Beach’s economic development officer.

The town’s message to the community is: It matters where you spend your money.

“Shopping from home and supporting large online retailers can be convenient, but there are consequences to the convenience,” he said. “Support local means more than just spending money in the backyard. Supporting local means investing in the community.”

The town has signs dotted throughout the community urging residents to support local businesses, and in July the economic development department launched an online portal which includes a business directory ().

Troy Disabato, who owns Torn Pages in Stayner, asks shoppers to check in with local businesses to see what they have in stock.

“Communication is a huge key … locals need to find out what’s in their community,” said Disabato, who adapted his business strategy in response to the pandemic, offering curbside service and in-town delivery.

Lisa Squire, who co-owns the Stayner Home Hardware with her husband John, said locals have been very supportive of businesses in the community throughout the pandemic.

She said her customers have also been very appreciative of the safety measures the store has put in place, such as limiting the number of people in the store and making sure touch points are sanitized.

“Customers feel safe, knowing that we are being careful,” she said. “On every level, safety of customers and staff is our No. 1 priority. We have too much to protect to make safety anything but first.”

King said spending money locally keeps it within the community.

“The temptation is to spend at large online retailers … but the consequences are that money doesn’t trickle down to local sports teams, into that charitable fundraiser, into local events and festivals,” he said. “The small and mid-sized businesses are not there just to support jobs and families, but they’re there to support the community and what makes it unique.”

And, said Disabato, it’s always good to check in with local store owners — if only to provide a mental-health boost.

“My regulars were reaching to me to ask if I was doing OK, can they still make requests for books. On a personal level, I knew there was still support,” he said. “Let a store owner know they’re doing a good job, thank them for respecting health guidelines.

“Let’s not lose that this is the season to be happy and respectful — let’s not lose that, even with the pandemic. It’s like the Three Musketeers, all for one and one for all — we have to be in it together.”

Story behind the story:  As we shift into the holiday season, Simcoe.com checked in with area businesses to talk about the importance of shopping locally.