Diane Francis: Canada’s doing better than most countries in coping with the coronavirus

In a bleak world, Canadians are luckier than most, according to a snapshot of global statistics released this week by the website Worldometer. The stats show that, so far, Canada has fared comparatively well throughout this pandemic, thanks to the fact that the country is organized, its people are disciplined and its health-care system is among the best in the world.

As a result, Canada’s coronavirus fatalities are comparatively minimal, as of April 8, but still total a tragic 12 deaths per million. (What is curious is that Quebec’s fatalities are much higher — 20 deaths per million).

That aside, many other countries are faring far worse, according to daily statistics. Canada’s 12 deaths per million compares to Germany’s 28 deaths per million, America’s 45, Sweden’s 79, the United Kingdom’s 105, France’s 167, Italy’s 292 and Spain’s 326. The lowest rates — among developed nations whose figures can be trusted — is South Korea, with four deaths per million, and Australia, with only two.

These figures are not static and will increase daily until a vaccine is found, which is most likely at least 12 months away. The good news is that there appears to be 20 or so promising compounds and experiments underway that are repurposing existing drugs that have been found to be effective at fighting other diseases. This may speed up the discovery of an effective treatment.

But healing the economy is another issue and the good news is that ubiquitous testing can get people back to work sooner rather than later. But tests are the key.

Germany is the leader and is already administering 50,000 tests daily (in comparison, the best Canadian province is Alberta, which, at its peak, was administering 4,000 tests per day, and has plans to expand testing). Globally, South Korea is the best in class and has flattened the viral curve dramatically through testing, quarantining and re-testing.

Companies and countries are now racing to produce millions of test kits that are capable of accurately and quickly diagnosing the disease.

Right now, tests are needed to protect front-line workers and the elderly, but also, on a random basis, to identify individuals, buildings or neighbourhoods that are hot spots. Eventually, testing must become mandatory, and those who are infected should be relocated to empty hotels or dormitories under medical supervision, because, as we’ve seen in Italy and elsewhere, allowing infected people to remain in their homes allows the disease to spread through families and neighbourhoods.

Testing must also be accompanied by a strict system of identification, online or otherwise. This is necessary in order to get the economy working again. Under such a system, people who don’t have the disease would be entitled to return to work, reopen their businesses, ride the bus, babysit, volunteer, teach and attend school, gather at restaurants and parks, etc. This will breathe life into an economy that currently has hardly any pulse.

Concerns that this disease can be incubated for some time means that re-testing must also be part of the process. To undertake this, many countries have established thousands of test sites outdoors behind folding screens, or in parking lots or drug stores. The good news is that the vast majority of those who test positive recover without hospitalization.

Alberta has administered more tests per capita than most countries, and has focused initially on those with symptoms, the elderly and front-line workers.

Another positive development is that there are many testing devices being created or produced. One American pharmaceutical giant is shipping a portable rapid-testing device that diagnoses people within five minutes.

But the silver lining in this cloud is that tens of millions of physicians, scientists and technologists from around the world are racing to find vaccines and treatments. They are conducting tens of thousands of experiments and sharing information unlike ever before, and governments have expedited clinical trial approvals. This means a game-changer or two will surface sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, Canada, with its disciplined populace, supportive governments and excellent centralized health-care systems remains one of the best in class in coping with the coronavirus so far.

Financial Post