What is coronavirus?
Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause manifestations ranging from the common cold to more serious diseases such as Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain of coronavirus that has not yet been identified in humans.
COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the latest coronavirus that has been discovered (SARS-CoV-2). This new virus and disease were unknown prior to the outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.
More information on the World Health Organization (WHO) website: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): questions and answers
Hygiene rules
Here's a reminder of what you can do to protect yourself.
You are encouraged to follow and reinforce basic hygiene rules for your children, including:
- Wash hands frequently;
- Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing
- If you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into the top of your sleeve or into your elbow;
- Wash your hands after coughing, sneezing or getting wet;
- Wash your child's hands after wiping their nose.
Travel advice
Check the travel advice for your destination regularly. The Canadian government updates the information for each country as more information become available, including travel precautions and conditions for returning home. This will allow you to make an informed decision.
Useful links
In order to have more information regarding general COVID-19 precautions, please visit the Public Health Agency of Canada website: https://www.canada.ca/fr/sante-publique/services/maladies/maladie-coronavirus-covid-19.html
- Ontario Ministry of Health
- Public Health Ontario
- Public Health Agency of Canada
- Government of Canada travel advice and advisories
Covid-19 Pandemic Lexicon
The Terminology Standardization Division of the Translation Bureau has established a standardized bilingual lexicon to demystify the basic concepts of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and to promote clarity in communications related to COVID-19. Terminologists will update the lexicon as the terminology evolves.