Researchers and staff at the Faculty of Science have come together to respond to the Government of Canada’s call for supplies to help Canada combat COVID-19.
In March and April, Navdeep Bains, the federal Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, requested postsecondary institutions to identify stocks of personal protective equipment and the chemical guanidine thiocyanate that could be made available to healthcare workers and the National Microbiology Laboratory (NML), respectively.
In response, the Science Stores in the Faculty of Science rounded up more than 50,000 gloves, which were donated to Humber River Hospital. Medical gloves form part of the personal protective equipment used to protect health care professionals and patients from the spread of infection; they are essential for the COVID-19 outbreak.
Additionally, researchers in the Faculty set aside a total of 600 grams of guanidine thiocyanate for donation to the NML. Guanidine thiocyanate is a denaturing agent used to isolate genetic material, and it is a key chemical for testing patient samples for COVID-19 infection. The NML is the only lab where Canadian COVID-19 tests are sent for final confirmation.
“I am proud that members of the Faculty of Science have rallied together during this difficult time to help protect the health of Canadians and healthcare workers during this pandemic,” said Rui Wang, dean of the Faculty of Science. “We all need to do our part to contribute to our country’s fight against COVID-19.”