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Soap and Water & Common Sense
Books·Canadian

Soap and Water & Common Sense

A nonfiction book by Dr. Bonnie Henry.

Dr. Bonnie Henry

CBC Books ·

The definitive guide to fighting coronaviruses, colds, flus, pandemics, and deadly diseases, from one of North America's leading public health authorities, now updated with a new introduction on protecting yourself and others from COVID-19.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, a leading epidemiologist (microbe hunter) and public health doctor at the forefront of the fight against the worldwide COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, has spent the better part of the last three decades chasing bugs all over the world — from Ebola in Uganda to polio in Pakistan, SARS in Toronto, and the H1N1 influenza outbreak across North America. Now she offers three simple rules to live by: wash your hands, cover your mouth when you cough, and stay at home when you have a fever.

From viruses to bacteria to parasites and fungi, Dr. Henry takes us on a tour through the halls of Microbes Inc., providing up-to-date and accurate information on everything from the bugs we breathe, to the bugs we eat and drink, the bugs in our backyard, and beyond. Urgent and informative, Soap and Water & Common Sense is the definitive guide to staying healthy in a germ-filled world. (From House of Anansi)

Interviews with Dr. Bonnie Henry

Get to know B.C.'s provincial health officer as CBC's Tanya Fletcher puts her through a quick round of questions. And they're not all related to COVID-19! 3:59
British Columbia's provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry on her 2009 book Soap and Water and Common Sense, which has been reissued. 8:58
The COVID-19 pandemic has been all-consuming in recent weeks. But another public health emergency has been well underway in BC, since April of 2016. Since then, more than 5,000 people in the province have died from overdoses. In April of 2020, 117 people died of an overdose, which is about three people a day. 11:09

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