Media Notices 2004

Notice to the Media - Wednesday, December 29, 2004

Minister of State (Public Health) Dr. Carolyn Bennett will be in Israel between Jan. 3 and 7 on a working visit to examine the country's disaster response system and possible applications to Canada's health emergency and disaster response preparedness.

Minister Bennett is being joined by Dr. Sylvie Stachenko, Interim Deputy Chief Public Health Officer for the Public Health Agency of Canada, Dr. Isra Levy, Director of the Office for Public Health at the Canadian Medical Association, MP Michael Savage (Dartmouth-Cole Harbour), who is a member of the Standing Committee on Health, MP Anita Neville (Winnipeg South Centre), member of the Standing Committee on Justice, Human Rights, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, and officials.

During their visit, the Canadian delegation will meet with Israeli counterparts and operational officials in emergency response and preparedness, as well as in the field of public health, to explore applications in the Canadian context and cooperation in the field of public health. The Canadian delegation is expected to visit the Israel Centre for Disease Control and the Centre for Medical Simulation. The minister is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Israeli Health Minister Dan Naveh.

For more information

• Minister of State (Public Health) visit to Israel

Note: There have been no provisions made for media to accompany the Minister on the trip.

Media Inquiries:

Tricia Geddes
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of State (Public Health)
(613) 941- 8081
cell (613) 299-6940

Julian Beltrame
Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 954-8528
cell (613) 266-3452

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Note to Editors - Monday, November 29, 2004

Malaria: A Plane Flight Away

OTTAWA - Malaria may not be associated with northern climates, but for Canadian travellers it is only a plane flight away.

And with winter vacation season approaching, Canadian travellers and medical professionals are advised of the release of guidelines that will help them prevent and manage this potentially deadly disease.

The Public Health Agency of Canada's Committee to Advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel (CATMAT) has published the 2004 Canadian Recommendations for the Prevention and Treatment of Malaria Among International Travelers to provide Canadian health care professionals with the most up-to-date information.

Severe malaria continues to occur in Canadian travellers. Last year, some 400 Canadians contracted malaria while travelling abroad.

To help prevent malaria deaths in Canada, health care professionals and travellers must be aware of the guidelines, procedures and information on the correct use of antimalarial drugs and the role of other protective measures, such as personal insect repellents and bednets.

Editors are advised they are free to publish the article Malaria in Canadian Travellers by Dr. Anne McCarthy of CATMAT at
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/media/advisories_avis/malaria_e.html, as well as the Question and Answer segment at
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/media/advisories_avis/mal_faq_e.html

For further information on malaria, please see www.travelhealth.gc.ca or the Public Health Agency of Canada website at http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca

Media Inquiries:
Aggie Adamczyk
Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 941-8189

Public Inquiries:
(613) 957-2991

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Notice to the Media - Tuesday, November 16, 2004

The Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Paediatric Society are hosting the 6th Canadian Immunization Conference in Montreal.

Immunization experts from across the country and around the world are gathering at this bi-ennial event to discuss key issues in immunization, such as vaccine supply, vaccine safety and emerging vaccines.

For more information, including the conference agenda, visit:
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/cnic-ccni/2004/2004_info_e.html

Date:
December 5 to 8, 2004

Location:
Palais des congrès de Montréal
Montreal, Quebec

Media Accreditation:
The conference is open to media. For accreditation, contact Ryan Baker at
(613) 957-2985.

Media Inquiries:
Ryan Baker
for the Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 957-2985

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Notice to the Media - Wednesday, November 10, 2004

Health Minister Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh and Minister of State (Public Health), Dr. Carolyn Bennett will join Dr. David Butler-Jones, Chief Public Health Officer, former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn and philanthropist Ted Turner, co-chairs of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, as well as the World Health Organization's Dr. Stephen Corber in launching the enhanced Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN II). GPHIN II is a unique, secure Internet-based “early warning” system developed by Canadian health officials to gather and disseminate preliminary reports of public health significance (i.e., bioterrorism such as anthrax, infectious diseases such as avian flu, SARS) on a 24/7 basis.

This conference will be held simultaneously from the United Nations press room in New York and the Public Health Agency offices in Ottawa via a broadcast quality satellite link.

Note: Media will require UN accreditation to attend the New York event. For more information on UN accreditation, refer to http://www.un.org/media/accreditation . For more information regarding accreditation procedures, please contact: Mr. Abdellatif Kabbaj, Chief, Media Accreditation and Liaison Unit, United Nation Headquarters, (212) 963-6934 or (212) 963-6937.

Date
Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Time
10:30 a.m.

Location
Emergency Operations Centre
100 Colonnade Road
Ottawa, Ontario

Media Inquiries:
Aggie Adamczyk
Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 941-8189

Adèle Blanchard
Office of the Minister of Health
(613) 957-0200

Tricia Geddes
Office of the Minister of State
(613) 941- 8081

Cathy Gwin
Nuclear Threat Initiative
(202) 454-7706

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Notice to the Media - Wednesday, November 10, 2004

Dr. Arlene King, Director of the Immunization and Respiratory Infections Division at the Public Health Agency of Canada, will be available to answer questions from the media about the World Health Organization's (WHO) meeting on influenza pandemic vaccines being held in Geneva November 11-12, 2004.

Date
Friday, November 12, 2004

Time
10:00 a.m.

Location
Teleconference
1-888-265-0464 or (613) 954-4096

Media Inquiries:
Aggie Adamczyk
Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 941-8189

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Note to Editors - Tuesday, November 9, 2004

The Public Health Agency of Canada report entitled Exploring the Link Between High Work-Life Conflict and the Use of Canada's Health Care System is now available on the Public Health Agency of Canada website.

This is the third of a series of six reports analyzing the data from the National Study on Balancing Work, Family and Lifestyle.

Dr. Linda Duxbury of Carleton University and Dr. Chris Higgins of the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario are conducting the national study on work-life balance.

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Media Inquiries:
Aggie Adamczyk
Public Health Agency of Canada
(613) 941-8189

Lin Moody
Carleton University
(613) 520-2600 ext. 8705
LinMoody@pigeon.carleton.ca

Marisa Kanas
Richard Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario
(519) 850-2536
mkanas@ivey.ca