Thanks to Covid, we've all gone to the dogs

The NPC Podcast is on the air. The organizers of the National Pharmaceutical Congress are proud to release our new weekly podcast series, hosted by Peter Brenders. Peter's guest this week is Pamela Fralick, president of Innovative Medicines Canada. Listen here now, or download the episode and play it at your convenience. The NPC Podcast is presented in cooperation with Impres Pharma. (The NPC Podcast is now on Apple iTunes.)

⇒ Issue #80 (In numerology, 80 is a number of abundance, accomplishments, achievements, success, and prosperity.)

⇒ Confirmed Covid cases in Canada as of 07/22: 113,473*
⇒ Confirmed Covid fatalities in Canada as of 07/22: 8,908*
⇒ Worldwide Covid cases as of 07/22: 14,976,453*
⇒ Worldwide Covid fatalities as of 07/22: 617,297*

July 22, 2020⏤Happy Hump Day, CurveFlatteners, it's Chronicle assistant editor Kylie Rebernik reporting from Oakville, Ont. with my ever-present sidekick Ms. Snowball hovering over my keyboard.

Along with unemployment (Canada's unemployment rate has risen to 13.7 per cent), animal adoptions have skyrocketed since the beginning of Covid. According to an article published by CBC, the British Columbia SPCA has been struggling to keep up with the demand for pet adoption, in particular dogs, receiving over 200 applications per pet. This is mirrored across the border. According to Sarah Brasky founder of Foster Dogs Inc., a New York-based non-profit, applications have risen from 140 per month at this time last year to 3,000 per month during the pandemic.

The question is: Why is pet adoption and fostering skyrocketing? According to Lisa F. Carver, assistant professor and privacy and ethics officer at the Centre for Advanced Computing, Queens University, during a pandemic people can be stressed and fearful for their lives and previous research has shown "that where this is a bond between human and animal, the presence of a non-human companion⏤especially a dog⏤decreases psychological arousal and stress."

In her research Carver studies if a robot pet can replace the connection with live animals. She noted that during the pandemic, older people, primarily those with Alzheimer's disease and dementia have been given therapeutic robot pets as a way to help with the socially distant guideline and loneliness that comes along with that. However, during a survey she did out of 102 people who answered, not one said they would choose a robot pet as a robot cannot provide an emotional connection.

Sadly, at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in Wuhan, China, pets were actually abandoned in large numbers due to people evacuating their homes because of the lockdown. An article published by CNN has reported that at the beginning of the lockdown pets were dying because they had run out of food and water.

So, if you are thinking about adopting a pet, remember eventually the pandemic will be over and that pet will be there. But most importantly: adopt, don't shop.

COVID CHRONICLE 07/22/2020

• Data taken from a Covid-19 symptom tracker app has revealed that there are six distinct "types" of Covid-19. Each type is distinguished by a cluster of symptoms. Researchers reported that these types of Covid can be used to predict the respiratory needs of the patient. You can read the full study here.
• With schools across Canada moving towards reopening, and some already open, a new study by the Korea Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, has found that children 10 to 19 can transmit the Covid-19 virus just like adults. However, in children under 10, the transmission rate is lower. Researchers also noted that the first person in a household to develop symptoms is not necessarily the first person to have been infected.
• New research led by the Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation, has found that the reason Canada's death rate for patients with Covid-19 is higher than countries with fewer healthcare resources, is because of Canadians live longer with chronic disease. Leader author Dr. Cindy Yip stated that Canadians are more vulnerable to Covid-19 because they have survived other health crises.

STORIES CHRONICLE IS WORKING ON... 

I am interviewing Drs. Jerry Tan and Marcie Ulmer for an upcoming article on the quality of sleep in patients with rosacea. Watch for the article in the upcoming issue of The Chronicle of Skin & Allergy.


RIGHT NOW WE ARE LISTENING TO...

The NPC Podcast. Hosted by Peter Brenders, CEO & Founder of Kontollo Health, the podcast explores how Covid has affected the Pharma industry. You can check it out on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and Podbean.


TONIGHT WE ARE COOKING...

Okay, so I am not actually cooking. Yesterday I met a friend for drinks at El Jefe in Port Credit, Ont., all socially distant guidelines were followed, but since I ate dinner beforehand and the food looked so good, I got a meal to go. I can't wait to dig in.


HOW IS YOUR HUMP DAY GOING?

Please use the comments section of the Daily CurveFlattener to let us know what you're up to today and please make a point of checking in via LinkedIn, email, or your favourite connector. Share this newsletter with your colleagues, if you please. Tomorrow, my colleague Cory Perla will be reporting from Hertel Village in Buffalo, N.Y.