Lessons from SARS will guide us through H1N1 pandemic

Six years ago this past March, when the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak hit Ontario, the ground shifted in the way the province’s hospitals and healthcare practitioners approach infection control and pandemic preparedness.

The SARS experience left an indelible mark on healthcare and healthcare workers across the province, underscoring the serious risks infectious outbreaks pose to patients as well as healthcare providers.

It seems like yesterday when I think about the rigorous protocols that were put in place to screen everyone entering hospital buildings. Hand sanitizers became new features along with the screeners and their questionnaires and the dot stickers that adorned identification cards. At first, some of us thought the precautions were a bit much – but very rapidly we came to recognize the serious risks and life or death consequences of the SARS outbreak when hundreds became critically ill in Ontario and 44 people tragically died.

The lessons from SARS will certainly guide us through the next wave of the H1N1 outbreak of 2009. It’s already evident in the increased vigilance and advanced measures in infectious disease management and preparedness. «

Christine Clark, Chief Communications Officer