Helen Branswell, acclaimed health reporter who worked in Calgary, dies at 69
Branswell, a Canadian Press and STAT journalist celebrated for her infectious disease coverage, died Tuesday from complications from cancer.
Helen Branswell, a veteran health reporter known for her award-winning coverage of infectious diseases, died Tuesday at age 69 from complications from cancer. She joined The Canadian Press wire service in 1986 and spent nearly 30 years there, working out of bureaus in Halifax, Calgary, Ottawa and London before settling in Toronto in 2000, where she found her calling covering health and medicine.
Branswell became a leading voice during the 2003 Toronto SARS outbreak, known for probing questions at daily briefings, and went on to cover bird flu, polio and Ebola with what colleagues described as meticulous, accessible reporting. Former CP health reporter Sheryl Ubelacker said Branswell "developed all kinds of sources" and led coverage of major epidemics.
After CP, Branswell joined the Boston-based outlet STAT at its 2015 launch, continuing to report on infectious diseases and global health. In January 2020 she published an early, detailed report on an emerging coronavirus outbreak, drawing on her SARS experience after spotting an alert about unexplained pneumonia cases in China the previous month. Her COVID-19 coverage earned her the George Polk Award for Public Service in 2021 and a Pulitzer Prize finalist nod the same year.
Branswell was born in Sherbrooke, Que., one of six children, and earned an English literature degree from St. Thomas University in Fredericton before beginning her career at The Daily Gleaner. Colleagues and family remembered her as both an exceptional journalist and a caring person.
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