Opinion: Strictly by the numbers, the coronavirus does not register as a dire global crisis

This translation has been automatically generated and has not been verified for accuracy.Richard Schabas is a retired physician. He was Ontario’s chief medical officer of health for 10 years, and was chief of staff at York Central Hospital during the SARS crisis in 2003.

I learned some powerful lessons from SARS in 2003. Maybe the most important one was how important it was to focus on what has happened rather than on what might happen. In other words: “Just the facts, ma’am.", particularly the new cases and the new deaths. I pay no attention to the various pundits and talking heads, because they are always wrong.

A couple of important caveats: First, far more cases are out there than are being reported. This is because many cases have no symptoms and testing capacity has been limited. There have been about 100,000 cases reported to date, but, if we extrapolate from the number of reported deaths and a presumed case-fatality rate of 0.5 per cent, the real number is probably closer to two million – the vast majority mild or asymptomatic.

The only plausible explanation is that COVID-19 is just not very transmissible among humans. Thank goodness. When it comes to pandemic potential, transmissibility isn’t the most important thing – it’s the only thing.

GlobeDebate 4/ Why do Canadians such as Dr. Richard Schabas, maintain so much honesty in the time of crisis? The answer: The majestic Canadian nature brings HUMILITY to us all; Being humble, makes you HONEST and SINCERE; And honesty, inspires COMPETENCE & INTEGRITY

GlobeDebate 3/ Numbers don't lie! 'Is COVID-19 a global crisis? Certainly for people who can’t add'. And if the stupidity of sheer sensationalism spreading Coronavirus fear was measured in DISTANCE - we could have gone to the Moon and back - twice!

GlobeDebate 2/ I received many abusive emails & tweets saying that I'm not an expert to talk about COVID-19. Well Richard is! 'But in the same three months, there have been about three million deaths in China from other causes, and about 14 million deaths worldwide'

GlobeDebate Bravo Dr. RICHARD SCHABAS! We need MORE experts like yourself to speak up! 'In the three months or so since it started, the new coronavirus and its related COVID-19 disease have caused more than 4,000 deaths, mostly in China'

GlobeDebate It is difficult in the extreme to understand the media frenzy behind a virus that is not decimating tens of thousands. Something nefarious is behind this; question is: What?

UofT GlobeDebate You're just making excuses now

UofT GlobeDebate Absolutely appalling that students pay thousands of dollars to go to a university that downplays a global health pandemic on Twitter & a university administration that doesn’t know to BCC in emails sent out to thousands of students regarding COVID-19

UofT GlobeDebate Why is the official university of Toronto account boosting this outdated article?

GlobeDebate People that use the phrase 'strictly by the numbers' usually do not understand the numbers, don't understand how numbers fit into a context and worst of all don't understand probability or multiplicative processes. But they're experts! Gag.

GlobeDebate Linear thinking

GlobeDebate And... All numbers of all countries are trustly? The numbers of China are trustly?

GlobeDebate It’s the new way of lying. ‘Strictly by the numbers...” Static set if numbers. Arbitrary definitions. See the dynamics. This is an evolving exponentially expanding pandemic.

GlobeDebate Strictly by numbers - you are mathematically challenged and irresponsible imbeciles!

GlobeDebate This is beyond dumb: 'Maybe the most important one was how important it was to focus on what has happened rather than on what might happen.' cc: FattestFatTony normonics nntaleb NachoOliveras

GlobeDebate This is so obtuse. When do you recall shutting down an entire country over the seasonal flu?

GlobeDebate 'Save your masks for robbing banks.' Well put!

GlobeDebate Not sure if the Italians would agree.

GlobeDebate Great article with real facts..

GlobeDebate I have always been saying this but was often shot down by the social media know-it-alls.

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