Recent Email From MAAC About COVID-19

[Richard_RC_Guy]

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[sihinch]

Never mind....

[Athol]

We're all (mostly) adults and we ought to make smart decisions. The Prime Minister has categorically stated "Stau at Home"!  Do with this (at this time) request, as you will.

Israel's lockdown can be a model for Britain

With strong government and cybertechnology, the public can be guided to do the right thing

Melanie Phillips

Tuesday March 24 2020, 12.01am GMT, The Times

For the past 12 days I have been under effective house arrest in Jerusalem. That's because, just over two
weeks ago, Israel started  requiring everyone arriving in the country, even if they were citizens, to self-isolate
for 14 days. Now all foreign visitors with no place of permanent residence are banned. My husband joined me in isolation at our place here a week ago.

So we've been living in a weird, quiet, shuttered world, unable to venture outside, reliant on food deliveries from local shops and communicating with family and friends through the virtual reality of Zoom, Facetime and Whatsapp.

When I emerge into the world again this week I will be allowed out only for a limited range of activities such as obtaining essential food and medicines, taking a short walk round the neighbourhood or participating in an "unorganised sport activity of up to two people". The police have opened more than
270 investigations and handed out dozens of fines over breaches of social isolation directives and quarantine restrictions.

Glued to my computer, I have been avidly following Britain's debate about the rights and wrongs of a lockdown. For here in Israel I'm living through one (albeit at present with soft edges).

From the start of this emergency, Israel's increasingly tough measures against the coronavirus have been ahead of the curve in Britain and Europe. The result is that, out of a population of
8.6 million, more than 1,200 have been infected and 24 are in a serious condition. Crucially, though, only one person so far has died, an 88-year-old man. The health system is coping and there's been very little panic buying in the shops. So how has this been achieved?

Soon after the first few cases of Covid-19 appeared in Israel at the end of last month the government stopped arrivals from China and subsequently from Italy and other hotspots.

It has steadily increased restrictions over the past two and a half weeks. Restaurants, clubs, cafes and gyms were ordered to shut. Hotels closed. Tourism collapsed. Employers were told to send home about three quarters of their workers. People were forbidden to gather in groups of more than ten. Cars were permitted  to contain two people only.

Synagogues closed and, last weekend, prayers at the al-Aqsa mosque were suspended.

Schools and kindergartens were shut. Grandparents were told to keep away from their grandchildren. In a country teeming with children, and with many families cooped up in cramped apartments, this has caused serious distress.

In addition to isolating people, the Israeli government has made a priority of identifying virus carriers. In the most controversial development, the domestic security agency the Shin Bet, using hitherto secret anti-terrorist cybertechnology, is collecting location data from the mobile phones of virus carriers and sharing it with the health ministry. Officials use this data not only to track whether quarantine is being obeyed but also to match it with the mobile data of everyone with whom the sufferer has come into contact. The result is that people suddenly get a message pinging to their mobiles to say they
have been exposed to a virus carrier and must immediately self­
isolate for 14 days.

Now an app has even been developed in Israel to warn people whenever they have been exposed to someone who's got the virus.

Covid-19 has thrown the world into a life-threatening crisis created by an invisible enemy. Israel, however, has long experience of a life-threatening crisis caused by visible enemies. So when coronavirus struck, Israel went into proactive, no­ messing-about crisis mode faster than countries like Britain which have had the luxury of living in peace and tranquillity for decades.

Nevertheless, some Israelis have been behaving badly just as in Britain, crowding beaches and parks in flagrant disregard of the crisis rules. Police have been using megaphones to tell such crowds to disperse, and have been breaking up wedding parties and arresting the hosts. There has also been a certain amount of chaos over restrictions which are contradictory or change without adequate  public warning.

And all this during Israel's neverending political uproar, with no functioning government after a third inconclusive general election and with Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, facing trial on corruption charges. Now he is being accused of exploiting the crisis to assume dictatorial powers.

Whatever his faults, though, his daily email bulletins telling the public in urgent, personal and even emotional terms what the government is doing to combat the virus are immensely reassuring for the average person stuck at home trying not to panic (like me). You feel he really cares about saving every life. And it doesn't feel like spin because he is treating the public as adults.

This, surely, is what leadership means.If you are making extraordinarily tough decisions that make unprecedented demands on the public, it's essential to take that public with you. And if you really want to save as many lives as possible,
Israel shows what unpalatable choices a democracy has to make to have at least a chance of doing so.

[Athol]

For those interested...

https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

[Athol]

Messaging is getting stronger...

Statement from the Chief Medical Officer of Health
March 30, 2020
TORONTO — Today, Dr. David Williams, Chief Medical Officer of Health, issued the following statement in response to COVID-19:
"The Government of Ontario continues to take decisive action to respond to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) to help contain its spread and to protect the public. This has involved some unprecedented measures, and I know many of you continue to undertake great efforts to protect your families, friends, neighbours, clients and patients, and communities.
However, we must do more.
Everyone has a role to play in reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19 - there is no option for anyone to opt out.
The lives of many Ontarians, especially our community's most vulnerable citizens, is in your hands and will depend on your actions over the coming days and weeks.
I strongly recommend you and other members of your household stay home except for essential reasons, such as to:
•   Access health care services;
•   Shop for groceries;
•   Pick-up medication at the pharmacy;
•   Walk pets when required; and
•   Support vulnerable community members with meeting the above needs.
To the fullest extent possible, you should also limit the number of these essential trips. However, when you are out in public you must adhere to physical distancing by reducing your exposure to other people outside of your household by keeping two metres from other people.
Given the greater risk of severe outcomes to Ontarians who are elderly, I am also strongly recommending that individuals over 70 years of age self-isolate. This means only leaving home or seeing other people for essential reasons. Where possible, you should seek services over the phone or internet or ask for help from friends, family or neighbours with essential errands. This also applies to individuals who have compromised immune systems and/or underlying medical conditions.
As we have been saying repeatedly, it is critically important to wash your hands regularly (or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available), practice proper cough and sneeze etiquette, and avoid direct contact when greeting people. 
In addition, as previously communicated and mandated by the federal government, all individuals who are returning from travel outside of Canada must self-isolate for 14 days when they return. You must not go to work, grocery stores or on walks. You should also monitor yourself for symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after returning and contact your primary care provider or Telehealth Ontario (1-866-797-0000) if you experience symptoms of COVID-19.
I also ask that family members, individuals, neighbours, and services in our communities look at how they can support others by taking these necessary actions. This would allow seniors, other at-risk populations, and returning travellers to remain at home.
The government is continuing to support all of the dedicated health care providers and front-line workers who are focused on keeping Ontarians healthy and safe.
We need to remember that we all have an obligation to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 to our families, friends, neighbours, and communities. Please do not underestimate the impact that your actions will have in helping to stop the spread of this virus.
For more information on COVID-19, including the current status of the outbreak, the online self-assessment tool to help determine how to seek further care, how Ontario is responding, and how to self isolate, please visit Ontario's COVID-19 web page.
Thank you for your ongoing action and commitment."

CONTACTS
David Jensen
Communications Branch
416-314-6197
[email protected]
Hayley Chazan
Senior Manager, Media Relations
[email protected]
Ministry of Health
http://ontario.ca/health

[Andy Hoffer]

Thanks for posting this Athol.  This sums it up really well.

Be well.

Andy H