Advisories & News
Press Release
Toronto’s Medical Officer for Health briefs Filcom on the novel corona virus situation in Toronto
2020-04-06
PR No. 08-2020
14 February 2020, Toronto-The Philippine Consulate General in Toronto invited Dr. Eileen De Villa to brief the Filipino community on the novel corona virus situation in Toronto yesterday, 13 February 2020, at the consular area of the Philippine Consulate.
A child of Filipino immigrants, Dr. De Villa is the Medical Officer of Health of the Toronto Public Health, Canada’s largest local public health agency that provides public health programs and service to 2.9 million residents in Toronto.
This briefing is part of the Consulate’s efforts to equip the Filipino community and the officers and staff of the Philippine Consulate General and its attached agencies with the right information regarding the novel corona virus situation in Toronto. In her talk, Dr. De Villa said “in the face of uncertainty, it is important for the community to be equipped with facts and the right information.” She emphasized that “at this time, the risk presented by this new corona virus to our community here in Toronto is low.”
Dr. De Villa also discussed the measures being taken by the local government in coordination with the Federal public health department in the face of this new corona virus or what is now known as COVID-19. She further discussed ways by which the people can protect themselves from contracting the said virus and other respiratory ailments. She likewise cautioned the audience about the fallacies circulating in social media about the coronavirus. She ended her talk with this reminder “keep yourself informed but make sure that your source is credible”. She then gave the contact details of Toronto Public Health in case the audience need to verify information regarding this public health issue. END.