Each week, journalists turn to Unity Health Toronto’s experts and programs to help make sense of our world. In case you missed it, here’s a recap of the headlines for the week of July 3-9.

They were afraid of getting the COVID-19 vaccine. How a talk with the family doctor changed their minds
Toronto Star on July 9, 2021
Interview with Dr. Tara Kiran

Dr. Tara Kiran is one of the many primary care providers across Ontario who believe they should have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 vaccination effort from the start. As a family physician, she had spent weeks trying to convince her patients, a mom and daughter who lived and worked in a COVID-19 hot spot in Toronto, to get vaccinated. She spoke to the Toronto Star on how she helps people change their mind about getting vaccinated and why family doctors can play a larger role in the vaccine rollout going forward.

Feds set to loosen travel rules, but only for a specific few
CTV National News on July 4, 2021
Interview with Dr. Fahad Razak

As of Monday, fully vaccinated Canadians and permanent residents who are fully immunized against COVID-19 no longer have to quarantine for 14 days. Dr. Fahad Razak, an epidemiologist and internist with St. Michael’s Hospital, tells CTV National News that it is reasonable to try and loosen some restrictions and that these policy changes should be implemented progressively.

Dr. Razak also spoke on CTV National News about COVID-19 infections after inoculation.

First minimally invasive maze procedure for atrial fibrillation performed in Ontario
Hospital News on July 9, 2021
Interview with Dr. Gianluigi Bisleri

The Cardiac Surgery team at St. Michael’s Hospital is the first in Ontario to complete a minimally invasive maze procedure to treat atrial fibrillation – the most common type of irregular heart rhythm. “It’s going to improve care for patients with atrial fibrillation in Ontario who require surgical intervention,” says Dr. Gianluigi Bisleri, the cardiac surgeon at St. Michael’s who led this procedure.