Five years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic – what have we learned?

Five years ago, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic of the novel coronavirus, setting off a series of policies that transformed Canadians' lives for years. Health-care workers do testing at a drive-thru COVID-19 assessment centre at the Etobicoke General Hospital in Toronto on April 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

By Analysis by The Big Story podcast

Posted Mar 11, 2025 07:17:31 AM.

It was five years ago today the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic because of the novel coronavirus.

It marked the start of a very different way of life, disrupting almost every part of our society.

What have we learned from that fateful day five years ago, and what has been the impact on society and on public health?

In today’s The Big Story podcast, host Gurdeep Ahluwalia speaks with Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch about his recollections and thoughts on how we changed as a society because of COVID-19.

You can subscribe to The Big Story podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google and Spotify.
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