Coronavirus monitoring

VIU has been actively monitoring the situation regarding a respiratory illness called the Novel Coronavirus 2019-nCoV since the illness was identified. There has been one confirmed case in BC. The province remains at LOW risk according to the BC Centre for Disease Control.

VIU takes the health and safety of our students and employees seriously. A website has been created where you will be able to find reliable information provided by a variety of authoritative sources. Please visit this site for updates on the situation. For situations such as these, VIU follows its pandemic plan.

VIU follows the advice of provincial, national and international health authorities and organizations. We encourage all of our students and employees to follow the travel advisories released by the Government of Canada. Current advice is to avoid all travel to the Hubei province and to avoid non-essential travel to China.

In closing, we wanted to share a few key points from Island Health Medical Health Officer (Nanaimo, Oceanside, Alberni-Clayoquot) Dr. Paul Hasselback:

• It is not necessary for the general public to take special precautions beyond the usual measures recommended to prevent other common respiratory viruses. Regular handwashing, coughing or sneezing into your elbow sleeve, disposing of tissues appropriately and avoiding contact with sick people are important ways to prevent the spread of respiratory illness generally. It is recommended that people stay home if they are sick.
• People experiencing the coronavirus symptoms, such as fever and cough, and who have travelled to the affected area or have contact with someone who travelled to an affected area, should call 8-1-1 or phone their primary care provider. Travel history and symptoms should be provided before attending an appointment.
• We all play a role in dispelling rumours that may lead to inappropriate discrimination. Only people who are experiencing symptoms may transmit an illness, it is not related to race or ethnicity. It is important to check authoritative sources for information on coronavirus.