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COVID-19: Faculty of Medicine Update 2020/03/12 - Faculty-hosted conferences, events

Published: 12 March 2020

To all members of the Faculty of Medicine, including all learners:

McGill University is closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation as it continues to rapidly evolve. When providing the community with advice, the University is following the guidelines of Quebec and Canada’s Public Health authorities. As members of the Faculty and health care system, we must exercise extra vigilance to contain the spread of the virus.

Faculty-hosted Conferences and Other Events

I, following consultation with the Dean's Operations Committee, am confirming that the official Faculty position on Faculty-hosted conferences is that they be cancelled or postponed until further notice. This applies to all similar gatherings, including symposia, congresses, etc., as well as large group meetings, in particular, where food and beverages are to be shared. We will revisit this decision in May based on the status of the COVID-19 outbreak at that time.

If it is unclear whether this applies to your event, the Public Health Agency of Canada Risk-informed Decision-making Tool can help you make the right decision.

Among the factors to consider:

Are persons attending the event coming from regions where there is community transmission of COVID-19 or from countries with unreliable surveillance of the disease?
Are persons attending the event members of a professional group (such as health professionals) that might have an increased risk of infection due to possible occupational exposure?
Are persons attending the event members of critical infrastructure roles, such as healthcare workers?
Are persons attending the event from demographic groups at greater risk of severe disease, such as older adults?
How many people are expected to attend the event? The larger the gathering, the greater the likelihood of a participant having COVID-19. As well, large numbers of people may also create a greater likelihood of crowding depending on the venue.
Will those attending the event participate in activities that promote transmission of an infection such as eating from a self-serve buffet?

If in doubt, the right decision is to err on the side of caution. Our goal is to contain COVID-19’s spread in this province and in our community, so that we are not faced with extreme measures like those being implemented elsewhere. Wherever possible, it is strongly encouraged to consider online platforms to replace such gatherings.

Travel to Conferences or for Other Professional Purposes

It is critical that you refer to and understand the Faculty position and MSSS directive sent Faculty-wide March 11. All members of the Faculty, including health care providers, learners, scientists, administrative support staff, all others, who work in the hospital/clinical or adjacent research milieus, whether or not they are in contact with patients, are expected to respect the travel restrictions outlined in the letter. Those who do not work, train or conduct research in the hospital/clinical or adjacent research milieus are similarly expected to exercise an abundance of caution when making decisions about travel.

Returning From Conferences or Other Travel

Additionally, we ask anyone returning from international travel, including travel in the United States, to use their judgement about attending meetings/events. Consider participating via Zoom or another online platform. When in doubt, err on the side of caution. In all cases, whether travel was in Canada, international or to high-risk areas, it is critical that you respect the instructions detailed on this McGill website, including self-isolation, as required.

Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact Leah Moss at leah.moss [at] mcgill.ca.

Thank you, everyone, for your understanding and commitment to containing COVID-19. By judiciously, calmly and collectively taking these and other important steps, including those in the Faculty’s March 11 message and on the McGill website, we can delay and reverse the trend.

Sincerely,

David Eidelman, MDCM
Vice-Principal (Health Affairs)
Dean of the Faculty of Medicine

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