Ebola risk in Canada low, says WHO
Ebola is highly contagious and deadly, so it makes sense some Canadians are starting to get nervous as headlines about the outbreak in D.R.C. and Uganda make it onto their feeds.
Still, the risk to Canadians is low, experts previously told CBC News, and at this point, Canada hasn’t implemented travel restrictions. WHO’s director general also noted that the global Ebola risk is low.
For one thing, Ebola is spread through bodily fluids, such as saliva, blood and semen. That means it doesn’t have the same global pandemic potential as airborne illnesses, like COVID-19.
Still, Canadians are reminded not to turn a blind eye. Kent Brantly, an Indiana doctor who contracted Ebola in 2014 while treating patients in Liberia, recently told my colleague Kevin Maimann that while the average Canadian and American has “nothing to be afraid of,” help is needed overseas.
“What we should be concerned about is the well-being of our neighbours in East Africa and the ways that people can help,” he said.
