‘A College communicates COVID-19 case to community >» One confirmed case at Douglas Atiba Nelson Staff Reporter QO: March 13, a Douglas student infectious with COVID-19 attended classes on the New Westminster campus and was at the New Westminster library for three hours between 10 am and 1 pm. Fraser Health, the Health Authority responsible for public health and health provision in both cities Douglas operates, informed the college of a case of the coronavirus. Douglas posted the notification given by Fraser Health on the “COVID-19 information and resources” webpage on March 24 at 8:10 am—the day they were informed by Fraser Health. The Health Authority, with the cooperation from the student who tested positive for COVID-19, had contacted the classmates of the positive student. According to the Fraser Health website, classmates—considered contacts—of a confirmed COVID-19 case should self-isolate for 14 days since the date of exposure. This means that any Douglas student that interacted with the student diagnosed with COVID-19 should have self-isolated until March 26. Additionally, the COVID-19 positive student spent time at the library. As recommended by the Health Authority, Douglas is advising students to monitor their health for symptoms of illness such as fever, cough, sneezing, or a sore throat. Also, Fraser Health recommends students avoid confined public spaces— these warnings are echoed by Public Health officials throughout Canada. According to the press release, the college was compelled to notify students by Fraser Health “out of an abundance of caution,’ and reiterated that “if [a student does] not have symptoms, there is little risk” Fraser Health authority disclosed the name of the student to the college, who stated that they had contacted the individual to offer support. Douglas reports that the student who tested positive for COVID-19 is “doing well.” “Due to privacy legislation, Douglas College is unable to release personal Have an idea for a story? Minews@theotherpress.ca ¢ Emergency funds available for Douglas students ¢ Board up or shut up ¢ Schools online for the summer ..and more Illustration by Udeshi Seneviratne Ce Douglas reports that the student who tested positive for COVID-19 is “doing well.” information about its students or employees. This is the only member of the college community with a known positive COVID-19 diagnosis,” stated the notification. The administration at Douglas College took the time in the press release to reinforce that the college is actively planning and responding to the COVID-19 situation in BC and also reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the health and safety of Douglas’ community members. If students are concerned about COVID-19 and need help determining whether further assessment or testing for COVID-19 is needed, the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) has an online BC COVID-19 Symptom Self- Assessment Tool available to the public at their website. Coronavirus impacts Vancouver's homeless population » Self-isolation and food shortage problems are most pressing EG Manilag Staff Writer Wr everyone is quarantined in their homes due to the coronavirus outbreak, there is a community of people who have no place to isolate themselves. To get a sense of what is happening in other parts of Canada, we look to Quebec on how they're dealing with the outbreak and their homeless population. About a week ago, Montreal’s homeless situation got worse—especially regarding social distancing. According to the Montreal Gazette, some are denied access to shelters to avoid overloading, leaving them in the streets where they have no proper social distancing or proper self-quarantine procedures. Although Quebec’s Health Ministry pledged to solve this problem, many homeless are still out in the streets. Stewart Greville is one of the few homeless that has been denied of free access to shelter. Greville has had a bad cough and achy muscles and is waiting for his test results to arrive. But he’s only been told to self-isolate until he gets his results. In Vancouver, the protocol for homeless shelters has been to increase the social distancing between clients. According to Union Gospel Mission (UGM) spokesperson Jeremy Hunka, “We're forced with the agonizing reality that if people come looking for help who have symptoms of COVID-19, we can't have them in our shelter because one person could put at risk the other 71 people that are there.” This puts them in a heartbreaking situation, having to turn sick people away with nowhere to go and nothing but a sleeping bag, he added. According to the Global News, Vancouver has installed u hand washing stations around the Downtown Eastside to combat the growing of the virus. The city, according toa spokesperson, has also planned to use community centres to isolate sick homeless people who may have contacted the virus. Social distancing and self-isolation are difficult for homeless, especially if they live in groups—which they often do. Handwashing is also impractical for them, especially the homeless in poorer countries, because they have no running water nor soap to use—making them oN Illustration by Athena Little especially vulnerable to the virus. “This is a ticking time bomb,” said David Chapman, who runs Resilience Montreal. “The homeless are sleeping outside, in groups, sharing bottles of beer, while the rest of the city self isolates. If the virus hits this community, it'll hit them hard.”